


The Stitches that Bind us

by PreciousEvil



Category: Team Fortress 2
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst with a Happy Ending, Falling In Love, Fluff and Angst, Loss, M/M, Red Oktoberfest
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-30
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-05-31 00:01:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 34
Words: 62,313
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15107528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PreciousEvil/pseuds/PreciousEvil
Summary: Eric Ludwig is the last of his family's line and is faced with the challenge of upholding the name in the light of practicing ethical medicine or to damn it in the pursuit of forbidden knowledge.(A Frankenstein inspired work)





	1. The string that led to this

The moon was covered by thick storm clouds and the smell of rain was thick in the air. It was a dreary night in the quaint little town of Rottenberg. The gas lamps dimly lined the worn cobblestone streets. It seemed that not a single soul was out of their home in anticipation for the expected rainfall. Rottenberg was a humble town full of hard working townsfolk. The only thing that stuck out from the ordinary white, brown and tan buildings was a foreboding stone mansion. The aged and withered mansion stood just on the outskirts of the tightly packed town, tucked away in the surrounding forest. The old mansion had belonged to the once renowned Ludwig family, but they had long fallen into bleak times due to some bad blood in the family tree. 

Before the Ludwig name was stained by devious members in the family. The Ludwig household had gained their wealth and renown due to their astounding medical research through the ages. Discovering methods of treating illnesses like tuberculosis, smallpox, measles, cholera and influenza. They were praised and beloved by the town and recognized around the world for their discoveries. They gained enough influence and fortune to build a manor just outside of Rottenberg’s busy streets, nestled beautifully in the surrounding forest. The grey stone manor stood elegant, tall and proud, as it looked towards the masses of homes and buildings in the town. It not only served as a home for the Ludwig family, but was viewed as a monument of pride for their small German town.

Like many rich or noble families of that time, they had formed a family crest. This shielded crest permeated the manor as paintings, carvings and banners. The symbol of a dove was accompanied with the colors of red, white and gold adorned with floral accents. Their family motto proudly presented above and below the shield and flourished designs. It read _Die Liebe der Wissenschaft, die dem Herzen dient_ , which means _The love of science that serves the heart_.

Unfortunately, the good times didn't last forever. Somewhere down the lineage there were some outliers amongst the medically inclined Ludwigs. There were some that used their influence and skill to dabble in less ethical methods of research. People went missing, graves would be robbed, and contagious diseases would pop up seemingly out of nowhere and then be quelled within weeks, but not without a sizable body count. It was eventually discovered that some of the members in the Ludwig house were at the root of these terrible occurrences. This caused a rift between those in the family who wished to help the world with their discoveries and those who wished to use others to benefit their research. Ultimately there was a fallout and the deviant members were cast out of the family manor. Some were tried for their crimes while others made their escape from their judgement. Those who remained in Rottenberg wished to repair the trust and honor their name once held, but the damage had already been done. 

The Ludwigs fell into despair due to their lineage being stained with the corruption of their twisted exiled ancestors. Much of Rottenberg despised their name. There had been several mobs that threatened to run the family out, but they often were able to settle the disputes peacefully. Only after several years of proving themselves to be sane once again, did the threats end and the growth of their acceptance begin. The family grew smaller over time until it rested with it’s most recent residents.The head of the house being Doctor Rechart Ludwig alongside his lovely wife Mila Ludwig, and their darling son Eric Ludwig. They were the start of rebuilding the ties between their family and Rottenberg.

Rechart was the town’s physician and Mila worked alongside him as the town pediatrician. While they worked, this left their son home with their butler, Mr. Schwartz. The youngest Ludwig would have tutors who came to the manor and teach him basic schooling subjects along with his extra lessons in medicine. Eric was a smart boy, a true prodigy to his family’s profession. However, due to the isolating location of the manor and his parent's absence, the boy had very few friends besides Mr. Schwartz.

The only other friend of his was Thomas, a bedridden boy who Mila would often visit for treatments. Eric would sometimes join his mother to visit Thomas. They would often play chess together and Eric would keep his sick friend distracted while receiving shots or IVs. Thomas was only two years older than he was, but as the months went on Thomas’ condition only worsened. Mila tried to explain to her son that sometimes medicine couldn’t fix every ailment, but Thomas was fighting very hard. Eric didn’t fully understand this, but believed with all his heart that Thomas would recover. Mila was proud that her son was making Thomas’ time left pleasant and they both had a good friend in their otherwise lonely lives.

Eric was only eleven when Thomas passed away. This loss was taken very hard. He became reclusive and that optimistic gleam in his eyes were dulled with reality. Death had sunken its icey teeth into Eric’s life and it wasn’t letting go. Tragedy struck again when his mother was taken by cancer when Eric was fifteen. His father was so badly stricken with grief that he turned to drinking. Rechart had been such a loving and supportive father up until that point. Harsh words and expressions of disappointment in Eric’s studies is all he ever provided now that Mila was gone. Growing up in the manor was now cold and melancholy. Eric was relieved when he was finally old enough to leave that dark desolate place his hopeless father had created. Eric was able to pursue his advanced studies at Rottenberg University. 

His life began to turn for the better. Like his father and his father’s father, and most importantly, as a proper Ludwig, he was studying to become a doctor. Eric studied hard and was top of his class. Despite being a stellar student, he still struggled socially. He preferred solitude most of the time, but when he did pursue friendships they would often fail due to his poor social skills. He didn’t intend to offend or come off as cold. It was just how he was and no one seemed to be patient enough to accept his flaws or help him improve. Eric learned to accept being alone, though he knew deep down something was missing. 

Eric was an adult and it was his last year of medschool along with his training hospital hours. He finally obtained his doctorate in medicine. It was then that he received the news. His father had passed away. It seemed Rechart’s drinking had done him in along with his poor mental state. With his father laid to rest, only now did Eric truly feel alone in the world. This left the Ludwig mansion and all that entailed to Eric, the last living Ludwig in the line. Once he had finished his schooling, Eric had originally planned to go abroad for his doctoral work. It now seemed he had a decrepit old mansion to deal with and was stuck in Rottenberg until he figured what to do with his unwanted inheritance.

That night the moon was covered by gloomy storm clouds and the smell of rain filled his lungs. It was a dreary night in the quaint little town of Rottenberg. The gas lamps dimly lined the worn cobblestone streets. One would expect that not a single soul would be outside due to the expected rainfall. However, the lone figure sporting a dark flowing long-coat made his way down the crooked street. He was heading towards the aged and withered mansion that stood tall even though it was tucked away in the surrounding forest. This mansion would once again house a Ludwig, but would this young man bring the name fame and glory once again, or bring it to a shameful end…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first time writing a fanfic, so please dont be shy to tell me your thoughts on it. Constructive criticism or lovely notes are encouraged.


	2. The empty home

The floodgates of the sky had opened and the rains came down in heavy torrents. Eric hastened his trek to the mansion in order to protect his luggage from any damage the water might cause to the contents inside. His black hair drooped over his forehead with the weight of the water and his round glasses became streaked with rain drops. The gravel road crunched beneath his black leather boots. The road was only visible by the few gas lamps that lined the private road to the mansion. The flickering flames were protected by their foggy glass casings. Eric made it to the front gates and fished out the old key then opened the locks. He quickly made his way through, locking the iron gates behind. 

The soaking wet doctor hurried past the front oval fountain adorned with four statues of fish pointlessly spitting out water into the shallow basin that was overflowing due to the rain. Eric made it to the front of the manor and up the slippery steps. He stopped at the top of the worn stone stairs that lead up to the grand porch. Finally finding refuge from the heavy rain under the roof that hug overhead, held up by two tall columns. Large dark oak doors were standing shut at the front of the manner. Two tarnished gold ring knockers were bolted in the center of each door, held in the mouths of decorative lion heads. Eric fished through his pockets again before finding the second key meant for the front doors.

The ornately carved doors groaned tiredly as Eric pushed them open. Cold air rushed towards him from inside the manor as the humid air flowed in from the outside. This caused him to shudder as he was soaked to the bone. With a firm shove, he shut the door behind him and a loud thud echoed throughout the vass interior of the manor.

“Good evening young master Ludwig, glad you made it home safely." An aged voice softly welcomed Eric in. The elderly man was in a sharp black suit and offered a fluffy white towel to the soaked Ludwig heir. This man had dulled brown eyes behind half-mooned spectacles that rested low on his slim nose. His thin white hair was slicked back neatly to complete a put together appearance despite it being the dead of night. 

“Mein gott Schwartz, you’ve gotten old.” Eric said bluntly and sntatched the towel out of the butler’s hands before using it to dry off. 

“And you have gotten taller young master.” Schwartz stepped to the side for Ludwig as he walked further into the grand entrance way. “I hope you are doing well, but I should express my deepest sympathy for the loss of your father.” The butler followed behind as Ludwig stepped further into the manor. 

“It vas inevitable given his propensity towards liquor ever since-” He paused in remembrance of the painful loss of his mother and quickly changed the subject back “It isn’t somezhing you should be sympazhetic about Schwartz, it vas expected. Everyvone dies at some point” Eric said pointedly as he shoved his bags into the arms of the older man. “Now takes zhese to my room. I vill go up and draw myself a bazh to varm up, because of how gott damned cold it is in here" He wrapped the towel around his torso as another shiver rolled down his body.

Schwartz nodded politely and did as his master bidded, heading up the grand staircase to the upper floor where the bedrooms were. Ludwig pulled the towel close to his body as he wandered the familiar room for a moment. He never wanted to have come back to this place. A soft sigh escaped his lips as he looked up towards the old crystal chandelier hanging over the marbled flooring in the large entryway. Ludwig’s eyes wandered towards a now tattered and torn woven tapestry that depicted the family crest. It was hung on the wall opposite of the doorway, above the stairs, to be seen by anyone who walked in. 

“Vhat a joke.” He muttered bitterly as he read the motto that had been ingrained into his mind since he was a little boy. _The love of science that serves the heart_. Being the last Ludwig, he found them to be empty words for this broken home. The love of science had brought his family to this barren state and their hearts had been served on a silver platter to the inevitability of death.

Ludwig made his way upstairs as Schwartz was making his way back down from fulfilling his duties. “Your bags are in your room master Ludwig. Also, I took the liberty of starting that bath for you sir.” The old butler gave a polite nod.

“Ja, ja, zhat is fine old man. I didn’t really ask you to do draw my bazh, but I’m too tired to care.” He pulled the damp towel off of himself and handed it to the butler. “Please take zhis vis you on your vay down.” The bitterness in his voice then faded to a more vulnerable tone. “Und zhank you again… for everyzhing Schwartz.”

The butler smiled softly and took the damp towel from Ludwig. “Of course young master, your family has always been my family to serve.” He bowed his head slightly again to silently dismiss himself as he proceeded down the stairs.

Eric slowly went up the stairs. His tired feet dragged a little against the hallway rug. The memory of this place was deeply rooted in his mind which made his body almost go on autopilot as he went to his room to treat himself to a nice warming bath. The bedroom was as elegantly decorated as the rest of the manor. Two tall windows faced towards the back of the mansion overlooking the gardens, but the long red and gold curtains were drawn closed for the night. The large bed had four dark wooden posts that almost reached the height of the ceiling. The colors were primarily deep red with accents of gold and splashes of white to break up the rich redness. Dark wooden furniture also added to the sophistication of the room. The furnishings were exactly what would be expect in such a fancy room. There were two doors inside the room. One lead to the large walk-in closet and the other connected to the bathroom. There was even a small fireplace located on the wall opposite of the bed. It had already been lit to help warm the room up. 

Ludwig slowly pulled off his clothing and tossed the soggy bundle into the hamper. He made his way to the bathroom and eased himself into the large tub. The comfortingly hot water enveloped his aching body, which was a blessing to his senses. A relaxed sigh fell from this mouth as he reached forward to shut off the flow of water. Leaning back again, he felt the weight of exhaustion finally settling down on him. “Perhaps staying here for a little vhile von’t be so bad. Just until I get zhings vorked out.". He smiled only for a moment before it faded back to his tired expression. 

After warming up and relaxing from the day’s strenuous journey, Ludwig dried himself off and wrapped a towel around his waist. As he opened the door to the bedroom, he only just then noticed that Schwartz must have laid out his sleeping attire for him before he had even made it upstairs. From being away for years and having to take care of himself, Ludwig found it a little jarring to have another person do small tasks he could manage on his own. But, he appreciated it for now due to the fatigue weighing on him. Also the fire in the fireplace had done a decent job of warming the room while he had been washing up in the tub.

Eric yawned as he slipped into his pajamas which simply consisted of black boxer briefs, soft navy blue sweatpants and a plain white t-shirt. His usually styled hair was a wild sleepy mess. The circular framed glasses he wore were folded delicately and placed on top of the nightstand next to the bed. He switched on the lamp next to the bed before shutting off the overhead lights that had been converted into electrical power back in the 1900’s. Finally he snuffed out the fire in the fireplace before he climbed into bed. Once resting the back of his head down on the plush pillow, his body was at ease. However, his mind was still racing with troubled thoughts of the future.

As his eyelids became heavier, it made it harder to focus on his worries. Eventually sleep took over and Ludwig got to have his much needed rest. The problems of tomorrow still awaited, but all was well and good until then…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to try and keep an every other day update to give myself time to write, but I might finish a chapter early and post consecutively. If this changes then I will definitely tell ya'll. Thank you again for reading!


	3. The mysterious key

A knock at the bedroom door woke Ludwig from his sleep. Sitting up with a yawn, Eric squinted across the room as the door opened and Schwartz stepped in. “Good morning young master Ludwig. Breakfast is ready for you in the dining room”. The old butler shuffled over to Ludwig's luggage and began to riffle through it in search of a set of clothes that his young master could wear that day.

Upon seeing this, Eric got out of bed and grumbled. “Ack, I can dress myself Schwartz. I’m not as inept as my fazher vas.” He marched over to his bags and made a shooing motion at the butler. “Don’t you have dishes to clean or somezhing to dust off in zhis dingy place?”

Schwartz stood up and took a few steps back when Ludwig had come over and motioned for him to move aside. “Sorry sir, I suppose some old habits are still ingrained in me. I will do my best in remembering to leave your daily clothes to your choosing.” He put his hands together, one folded on top of the other, and held them just below his chest. “I’ll be down in the kitchen if there is anything you need sir. And do come down soon to prevent your food from getting cold.” There was a slight cheerful gleam in the old man’s eyes.

Ludwig gathered some clothes into his arms. “I’ll be down shortly. You can leave now.” He said plainly as he turned to go get ready in his bathroom. 

Much of his wardrobe was the same. Nice button up shirts in varying neutral colors that were short sleeved or long sleeved. His pants were dressy and were made of fine cloth. In his time at university he was often mistaken for a professor due to his rather formal attire. The round spectacles he wore also aged his appearance.

Another notable feature was when he would style his hair. Without fail, a small section at the front if his hair would stubbornly fall forward over his forehead and slightly bend towards the right. This was a family trait that many of the Ludwig men had. It was just another sign of his heritage.

Eric was sporting a plain white button up long sleeve shirt, black pants with black leather shoes that were slightly scuffed around the toes. He had gotten ready with some amount of haste in order to make it downstairs before the food got cold. The manor had a tendency to be chilly unless fires were lit to fight off the frigid air. Thinking if this, Ludwig went ahead and pulled on his long coat. But before making his way down to the dining hall, he dug through his bags and found a book he had been working on to pass the time as he was likely to be eating alone.

In the dining hall there was a sizable crackling fire in the grand brick fireplace that was parallel to the dining table. On either side of the fireplace there were large windows that faced outwards to view the the manor’s garden. The sky overhead was still full of storm clouds, but the rain had halted for the time being. The long wooden dining table had several matching wooden chairs that were styled with deep red upholstered sections at the seat and backing. The only chair of real notice was the one standing at the far end of the table nearest to the kitchen doors. The back was a foot taller than the rest and it had arm rests at either side with lion heads at the ends. In front of the head chair, qon the table was a silver dome covering which was keeping the breakfast underneath it warm. Propped up against it was an envelope with Eric’s full name elegantly inscribed on the back. 

Ludwig pulled off his long-coat and draped it over the back if the head chair before taking a seat. He placed his book out of the way on the table before picking up the letter. Taking the butterknife, he ran it across the top. Upon opening the letter, there was a note along with a golden key inside. 

The bow of the key was adorned with two white marble doves which were facing each other. The tips of their beaks were touching and each had one wing opened outward to make a wider end to grip. There was an empty space between the dove’s chests. This space was likely for running a cord or small chain through to wear the key as a necklace, or keep it on a keyring. Their tails came down and curved together before a metal band connected the rock with the gold metal stem of the key.Ludwig examined the key a moment before setting it aside to read the note that came with it.

_Dear Eric,_   
_You are the head of the Ludwig family now, and we bestow upon you our greatest achievements and darkest discoveries. With this key you can unlock our family history. We warn you though, not to be seduced by the wretched workings of our mad ancestors. Their writings are kept only as warnings of what harm a skilled doctor can perform. We know you can do amazing things Eric. We truly hope you are remembered and continue to share our memories with your children._   
_With Our Love_

The signatures at the bottom were unmistakably his parents, but the pretty handwriting that the note was written in clearly had been done by his mother. His vision was momentarily blurred by tears that threatened to flow from his eyes, but he quickly blinked them away. Ludwig sat in contemplation for a moment, still holding the letter in his hand. The calming crackling of fire fillined the silence. Suddenly, Ludwig stood up from his seat and swiped the key off the table before making his leave of the dining room.

Entering the kitchen with haste, Ludwig easily caught the attention of the diligent butler who had just been finishing sweeping the kitchen floor. “Oh, are you in need of more food, sir?”. The older gentleman smiled knowing that wasn't the reason for his young master's presence. He rested the broom against the counter, awaiting Ludwig’s response. 

“Nien. I don't need more food, I need answers.” He held up the letter along with the key. “You placed zhis letter vhere I vas to be seated for breakfast, but did you know who it vas from? Vhat it contained??”

Schwartz nodded a little with a small smile. “Yes young master, it is the rest of your inheritance. Your family has kept all their original research notes a secret for as long as anyone can remember. No one has been able to find where it is hidden, or if they have, they had no way of opening the secret door without that key.” He gestured to the key in Ludwig’s hand. “Even the best locksmiths or thiefs in the world would have a hard time getting into where that key leads, sir"

Ludwig lowered the letter and key in question. “But zhe letter inside vas from my parents, in my mozher's handwriting. how long have you been holding onto zhis?” He sounded more curious than confused, it was obvious this letter was old.

The butler picked the broom back up and began walking towards the closet he had taken it from. “Your parents had written that letter together when your mother had been declining in health and was bedridden. She wrote the letter and your father had possession of the key. When he passed away, I was to give you an envelope containing both.” He put away the broom and turned to look at Ludwig, folding his hands behind his back. “I take it you wish for me to show you what that key opens.” It wasn't even a question, more like a prediction.

“Of course!” Eric’s tone was enthusiastic. “Who knew zhis old mansion had a secret I didn't know of!?” He twirled the key between his fingers with anticipation.

“Well, I did sir. And I plan to take you there.” Schwartz said with a playful smile. He was glad to see Ludwig looking excited for the first time since he had arrived back to the manor. That same look reminded him of when his master was only a child and discovered a new bug he had never seen in the gardens.

Ludwig smiled and folded up the note before slipping it into his pocket. “Lead zhe vay zhen, mein freund". His hand closed around the key that would lead him to his fate...


	4. The secret passage down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just announcing here that translations will be in the notes at the bottom :)

Schwartz brought Ludwig to the familiar door of the master bedroom before stopping abruptly in front of it and placing his hand on the door knob. He looked over his shoulder, his voice had shifted from the previous conversation in the kitchen. The butler sounded more serious and intense. “Are you certain you are ready for this master Ludwig? Your father entrusted me with providing you with this wealth of knowledge when the time was right... I just want to be certain that you can handle what ideas some of your past family members had tampered with. You have gotten your parents warning, but I thought I should present my own concern for this, sir. You are still so young and there’s no shame in giving yourself time, especially with the recent loss of-" 

The old butler’s worried ramblings were cut off by Ludwig’s annoyed tone. “I can handle it Schwartz! I’m not zhe little boy who you vould read bedtime stories to anymore. I’m an adult und I can make choices for myself. Now open zhe damn door, you are trying my patience.” The doctor’s voice hissed with irritation and his hand twirled the key eagerly. 

“Yes sir. Sorry sir" Schwartz quickly opened the door for Ludwig to enter into the master bedroom. 

The room was cold and dark until a switch was flipped to at least bring some light to the area they had entered. Upon walking in, the first thing seen across the room was a white stone fireplace. This room was large and like many of the other big spaces in the manor, it required a fireplace to keep it heated. The bedroom was much lighter in color than the majority of the rooms that favored the color red and deep brown wood. The master bedroom was mainly white and gold with some accents of red here and there. There was a relief carving of the family crest eye level on the wall opposite of the grand king sized bed. 

Above the mantle of the fireplace hung a big painting of the last entire Ludwig family. Rechart was standing tall and proud, his right hand resting on Mila’s shoulder. She was sitting in a chair with a young looking Eric standing in the forefront, between his mother and father. All were dressed in fine clothes and looked peacefully content in the painting.

A small pain tugged at Ludwig’s chest and he averted his eyes from the painting that flooded his mind with the memories of his once happy family. That picture felt like it had all been but a distant dream. It only reminded him of the reality of his loneliness, and he was bitter to the thought. One could argue that Schwartz was like a second father to him, but the old butler had been hired to take care of him and was still paid to be there. Eric stubbornly rationalized that Schwartz would naturally be concerned for the health and welfare of his employer who paid him to do so.

“Vell, vhere is zhe location of zis hidden research zhat I must unlock?” Ludwig looked to his butler expectantly.

Schwartz walked over to the stone carving of the Ludwig family crest and gestured to it. “Here sir. Your key should fit into the hole that is located at the eye of the dove.” He took a step back to make way for Ludwig.

The curious young doctor was still wondering how putting a small key into the stone wall could possibly unlock anything. However, he did as the butler said and slid the key into the stone dove’s hollow eye and turned it until a soft click was heard. Suddenly the wall shook and the sound of heavy cranks and mechanical workings from behind the wall were turning. The wall sunk backwards a few inches before settling with a weighty clunk onto a wheeled track. Ludwig pulled the key out of the dove before that section of the wall was pulled aside, revealing a hidden passageway.

“ _Heilige Scheiße_ …” Ludwig muttered in amazement at the new opening that had revealed itself. It took a moment, but lights along the ceiling began to flicker until the power stabilized and the lights stayed on constantly. There was a few feet of level flooring until it descended into steps. “I vas expecting more of a secret closet full of doctor journals, but an entire basement?” He looked to Schwartz with an expression of shock.

The butler smiled a little. “Why don’t you go down and explore? I will be right behind you, sir". He folded his hands behind his back and waited for Ludwig to proceed.

With an adventurous glint in his eyes, Eric stepped into the passageway and went down the steps. The air was stale and musty while a few cobwebs clung to the corners of the ceiling. He remained quiet as the stairs came to an end and the interior of the basement was within view. Walking into the secret basements, Ludwig took in the new surroundings. Strangely enough, this place seemed to have a tall ceiling that mirrored the height of the whole manor, first and second floor combined. The walls were plain grey stone, though one of the walls had a single sizably long window set high up above which could allow some sunlight to filter in. If it wasn't still storming, the window might have been more obvious. There was a chain that ran down along the wall that when pulled could open the window when fresh air was needed to help circulate the stuffy room. 

To one side of the basement there were several book shelves filled from top to bottom with books, notebooks, binders and all sorts of writings. Next to that was a desk that had papers, books, ink bottles, pens and pencils scattered over its wooden surface. A table lamp stood on the corner of this desk and a leather office chair was pushed up under it. That was only one half of the room, the other half is what drew in most of the attention. It was set up like laboratory. Two metal tables were against the wall and all sorts of medical equipment, glass vials and old yellowed papers were placed on them. Large mechanical machinery was set up next to these tables and took up almost a fourth of that side of the wall. A few cages, the size of small cells, were next to the machine. The bars were made of thick black iron with formidable locks and small beds with stained mattresses inside. In the center of this side was an old wooden examination table with metal restraints that hung to the sides.

“I see. It is as if zhe two sides of my family's past are in one room.” His eyes lingered towards the lab section of the basement before the clearing of a throat caught his attention.

“Ahem.” Schwartz was standing back over near where they had entered at the base of the stairs. “If you wish to stay down here and read, there are two things I would like to bring to your attention before I leave you to it.” He gestured to a lever. “This allows you to shut the secret doors above in case you need to close them from down here.” Next he gestured to an old wall mounted rotary phone. “This is connected to several places in the manor, sir. If you are in need of anything, simply follow the guide next to it and I am sure to get to one of the hidden lines to be at your service.”. The butler pointed to a paper that had numbers with locations next to them which was taped next to the phone. With this explained, he walked back towards the stairs and looked at Ludwig again.

“Ja, I vould like to stay down here for now. Also, I vant you to move my belongings into zhe master bedroom. Put avay my zhings zis time, und take down zhe painting over zhe fireplace. I hope zhat vill keep you busy enough" Ludwig had already began skimming the bookshelf for anything of interest. 

Schwartz shook his head a little, but gave a small smile nonetheless. “Yes young master Ludwig. I will get right to it. And I expect you will be wanting lunch to be brought down here?”

“You’re still razher sharp for your age, Schwartz." Eric teased playfully as he plucked a notebook from one of the shelves before looking at the butler with a gleeful gaze. “I have a lot of reading to do, so I had better get started, ja?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heilige Scheiße= Holy shit


	5. The rejected research

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Slight warning: concepts of torture and unethical medical practice is metioned. So if any of that doesn't appeal to you, then you have been warned it is in this chapter and to beware!
> 
> Also i'm not actually a doctor, so take what I say as seriously as a dramtized hospital tv show. I do my best to research things, but it doesnt always make sense and I flub it. 
> 
> Anyways,  
> Hope you enjoy this chapter though!  
> A storm is comming

Days passed and each one was relatively the same. Ludwig woke up, got dressed then went down to the secret lab to study. Schwartz would bring him his meals and occasionally encouraged his young master to go outside and get some fresh air, or simply walk around the manor, depending on the weather. On the clear days when the weather was nice, Ludwig would simply open the singular window in the lab and claim that it was enough fresh air and for Schwartz to leave him be. On the rainy days, however, he would take whichever notebook or file folder he had been browsing and read it in the sunroom. He liked to hear the calming sound of raindrops hitting against the glass ceiling and the smell of rain was most prominent here.

Rottenberg was very prone to storms this time of year and Ludwig loved it. The fresh smell, the soothing sound of rain when it landed, the flashes of lighting that lit up the dark cloudy skies and the rolling rumble of thunder that followed. Best of all, it gave him the wonderful excuse not to go outside and to keep reading. He had gone through many of his ancestors journals by now. Some of which he just skimmed through, finding little interest in their research, while others he absorbed every little word. The authors of these ranged from great great uncles and aunts, to great great great grandparents and everyone in between. He found the patient logs interesting if the author had kept note of them. Reading through the names of people his family had help was fulfilling in a second hand way. Ludwig so far had kept to the shelves that were deemed ethical research, which were properly labeled and organized. However, there was still one bookshelf he had yet to explore.

This bookshelf was ominous. It was shoved in the back corner of the room and the contents on it were piled up, out of order and generally neglected. He had even spotted a human skull that was keeping a few journals upright. The lone skull must have not been returned to its proper owner when taken, unless it might have been what was left of one of his previous relatives. Either way, he was growing tired of the rather ordinary procedures taken by the more appealing side of his family. He wanted to delve into the darker subjects that a handful of his family had dove into. 

It was lightly raining that day and Ludwig had just gotten washed up and dressed before going down to the basement lab. Schwartz was already in the kitchen making breakfast for the young doctor who he expected was already down stairs reading like usual. This time was different though. Ludwig had wandered past the shelves that had been deemed ethical and ventured to the back to see what intriguing subjects of shunned research he could find. 

He pulled out a few of the less beaten up books and brought them over to the desk before skimming over the labels on the covers and a few of the pages. “Prosthetics", seemed innocent enough until further reading exposed that many of the patients had started out with all four perfectly working limbs, that is until Dr. Harris Ludwig got a hold of them. “Poisons", the title alone was rather self explanatory as to what was written inside, but Dr. Greta Ludwig certainly enjoyed writing the gruesome details of her results. “Breaking Points", this one mainly delved into torture methods including extended periods of isolation and what it does to the brain and other abominable tactics used to test the limits of the human body. Dr. Josef Ludwig was certainly a troubled man. 

Eric was even more engrossed with these journals than the principled ones he had been reading for the past several days. Schwartz came down holding a silver serving platter with Ludwig’s breakfast along with that morning's newspaper, folded neatly beside it. The old butler noticed the fascinated expression on Ludwig’s face and he smiled unknowing as to what it was the doctor was reading. He set the tray down next to his young master on the desk. 

“What is the topic of this morning’s journal, sir?”. Schwartz said hoping he could get a few words out of him. The butler sometimes did wonder if he should push more for Ludwig to invite some of his friends from university over, but the last time he offered that was when he was told off and then not spoken to for the rest of that day.

Ludwig jumped a little in surprise and looked up at Schwartz. “Vhat zhe-!?” He clutched his chest and let out a short breath. “Schwartz, I didn't hear you enter. I should really tie a bell around you so I can hear vhen you are coming.” He let out a short laugh. 

“Sorry sir, I will announce myself next time. I simply didn’t want to interrupt your focus. You looked rather captivated by your reading" the old butler gave a small bow of silent apology. 

Ludwig took a quick bite of the breakfast before it registered that Schwartz had asked him a question. “Oh, zhis journal? It’s one of zhe ones from zhe back.” Ludwig flipped it back to the cover and it was titled “Chemical Acids".

Schwartz smile turned to a concerned expression. “I see.” He then noticed the small pile that must have already been looked through. “I hope you are taking these journals seriously. They are not just gruesome stories, those horrible procedures actually happened to real people.”

Ludwig rolled his eyes. “Ja, I _know_ old man. It’s tragic vhat happened to zhose patients, but zhere is so much useful data zhat is cast aside because of zhe mezhod it vas found. If I had been one of zhese patients-” He placed his hand firmly on the stack of rejected journals “-I vould vant people to gain knowledge from zhe vay I had died razher zhan be forgotten in a journal and left on a shelf, or even be a fleetingly memory on a depressing newspaper article.” He picked up the newspaper and waved it around.

Schwartz sighed softly. “I understand sir, but those journals would more than likely be burned than taken seriously in the hands of others. That is why the best place for them is hidden down here.” He looked back to Ludwig with a more neutral expression. “But enough of that subject. I hope you enjoy your breakfast. Is there anything else you would like before I leave, sir?” 

Eric had already turned back to skimming the page he had been on before Schwartz interrupted him with breakfast. “No zhank you. You may go". He said bluntly before leaning over slightly to take another bite of food.

The butler took his leave of the basement and Ludwig was left to his solitude once again. After finishing the compelling notes on how certain acids affect certain human tissues, Eric had finished the small stack of twisted medical journals. He took a moment to finish his breakfast and then picked up the journals to put them back on the shelf. Looking through the shelves again, a thicker journal had caught his attention. It was covered in a good layer of dust, like many of the things in the basement, but the title was unmistakable. “Reanimation”, by Dr. Frank Ludwig.

He pulled this book off the shelf and brushed the dust off as he looked at the cover. It was a better kept journal that had a hard leather cover. He brought it over to the desk. Eric took a moment to use the phone to get Schwartz to retrieve the dishes. Settling back down in front of the desk, he was excited for a chance to harshly judge the clearly absurd notion of reanimating the dead.

As he began to read, it was difficult to find fault in this man’s deep understanding of death and the process of decay. It was all correct and irritatingly accurate. So, for Ludwig to then discredit Fank’s ideas entirely was less compelling. He sat there and read, only taking some breaks to stretch or use the restroom that was down there, which he had Schwartz thoroughly clean before he had ever even thought of using it. Time passed quickly as he was absorbed in this lengthy amount of writings, and soon Schwartz was back down to announce lunch was going to be ready in an hour. 

“Good. Go ahead and bring it here vonce it’s ready, bitte." Ludwig didn’t even turn around, expecting Schwartz to leave on his own. 

“Actually, it seems you are having someone joining you for lunch today, sir. I came down in order to give you this one hour notice so you could get ready for company” His voice was a little timid, but he stated it in a direct way that made it sound like Ludwig didn't have a choice in the matter, which was sort of true.

The doctor gave his butler a scowling look “Vhy didn't you tell zhem I vas busy, or vas sick and couldn’t be bozhered at zhe moment??” he didn't give Schwartz any time to answer before continuing on his agitated rant. “Unless you vere zhe one who invited zhem. I _told_ you I didn't make friendships at university zhat vould varrent visits after graduation! So, who is coming to lunch?!?” His voice was raised slightly and his tone was aggressive. 

Schwartz wasn’t caught off guard by Ludwigs flare in temper, he calmly replied. “The mayor called and he wished to have lunch with you and talk, sir. I wanted your first impression to be cordial so I took the liberty of inviting him here. You also would likely be more comfortable staying here at the manor. So, I will be calling for a driver to pick him up shortly. I recommend you dress for the occasion, young master Ludwig.”

Eric’s anger simmered down to a sense of confusion. “Vhy vould zhe mayor vant to speak vis me?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bitte = please


	6. May-or may-not

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Did someone ask for a slightly longer chapter? No? Too bad... it sorta just happened. Lol.   
> Enjoy!

An hour to get ready for a visit from the mayor. First off, Ludwig closed off the secret passage in case of the mayor requesting a tour. Secondly, he needed to get dressed in a more formal manner to keep up appearance as a noble Ludwig should. He kept his white long sleeve shirt on and pulled on a black vest over it. It had golden buttons down the front and he put a red silk handkerchief in the chest pocket. His tie was a matching silk red with little ornate designs that added to the fancy look. With that he was wearing his usual black slacks with an added belt drawn around his waist. Its sleek golden buckle only barely visible from where the vest hung down in front of it. Then he wore polished black leather dress shoes and calf high socks that weren’t visible from under his pants. Ludwig had slipped the laboratory key into his right sock, to keep from misplacing it. Finally, he simply ran a comb through his hair and put on some cologne before making his way to the front of the mansion.

Like clockwork, the paid diver pulled up to the front gates. The chain and lock had been taken off that morning, seeing as Schwartz would only put the lock on the gates during the late hours to prevent unwanted guests. So, it was a simple press of a number code that made the gates swing open for the vehicle to enter the estate grounds. 

The black vehicle came to a stop at the bottom of the manor steps. The driver stepped out before walking around to open the side door. A rather fat gentleman emerged from the car. He had brown balding hair that was combed back with styling gel. His eye shape was downturned and pupils were a dark brown. He had a bulbous nose and thin lips. His attire was posh and he leaned heavily on a black cane that had a golden handle with a clear glass jewel glittering at the end. The other side of the door opened without the driver’s assistance. A tall, well built man in almost an entirely black suit came out and walked around to be at the side of the shorter, rounder man. The mayor and his bodyguard made their way up the stairs. 

Schwartz was in the kitchen, finishing the last touches on meal he was to serve the mayor and his master. This left it to Ludwig to open the door for the undesired company. He was pacing back and forth in the entryway, fidgeting with his cufflinks nervously. He had wondered what he had done, or didn't do, to warrant a visit from the mayor himself. His worried thoughts were brought to a halt when an echoing knock at the door grabbed his attention. Ludwig briskly got to the door and opened it for the guests.

“Ah, Mr. Mayor, vhat a vonderful surprise for you to have come and visit!” He did his best not to sound too fake about his excitement for the mayor being there. “Please, do come in.” Ludwig stepped aside as he held the door open for them to enter. 

The mayor smiled as he walked inside, looking rather jolly with his round naturally blushed cheeks. “ Thank you Dr.Ludwig, it is a pleasure to have been invited into your home for a meal. And please just call me Arnold, or Mr.Werner if you prefer.” The bodyguard simply followed behind the mayor as Ludwig led them further inside the manor.

“So, vhat is it zhat you vish to talk vis me about?” Ludwig said plainly as they made it into the lounge to sit and wait until lunch was served.

Mr.Werner took a seat in one of the armchairs that faced the fireplace which was crackling and giving off much needed warmth. The bodyguard stood diligently out of the way, keeping close to the wall. The mayor rested his cane against the side of the chair he was sitting on. “Ah-ha! Getting right to the point, huh? I like your directness doctor. Can't afford to beat around the bush with your line of work, right?” He chuckled a little, radiating his cheerful attitude. 

Ludwig thought to himself that he didn't understand what was so funny about being straight forward, it was the most efficient way to get answers to a question in his mind. “Uh, ja. It is razher important to know vhat is vrong vis a patient as quickly as possible in order to render aid in zhe best vay one can provide.” He did his best not to sound too flippant when answering the pointless question. Ludwig then went over to a table that had a crystal bottle of liquor and a few short crystal glasses that matched. “Care for somezhing to drink vhile ve vait?”. He was already pouring himself a glass, because god knows he needed one to make it through this visit. 

“No thank you doctor. I’ve been trying to cut back on drinking, but I appreciate the offer.” The mayor seemed to be looking around at the lounge in interest of its lavish decoration and architecture.

Ludwig decided to take a seat in the chair across from Mr.Werner. He smiled slightly at the awed expression the mayor had. “Beautiful, isn't it? Most everyzhing in zhis place vas hand made. You can’t get zhis level of pure artistry from a factory I’m afraid." The doctor felt oddly proud of his home now that the mayor seemed taken away by its beauty.

“Yes, yes it is quite magnificent. More enchanting than I thought given that the exterior is a little worn down. But nothing a little elbow grease can’t fix. Hahaha!" The mayor then looked at Ludwig with a slightly puzzled expression. “This is a rather big place for you, it must get awfully quiet seeing as you and your hired help are the only ones living here now.” 

Ludwig took a small drink before replying plainly. “I quite like zhe quietness actually, and my butler Schwartz does his best to hold a decently intriguing conversation every vonce and avhile.” after he finished talking, he knocked back the rest of his drink.

They chatted like this for a few minutes before Schwartz came into the lounge and announced lunch was ready. All of them went to the dining room and the two men of title sat at the table meant for large parties while Schwartz served the food and the bodyguard stood in a place he could keep watch.

As they began to eat, Mr. Werner complimented the delicious food and Ludwig bragged a little about Schwartz’s culinary skills. So far the visit was turning out to be more like a friendly neighbor coming over than anything. However, this changed when the true intentions of the mayor’s interests were finally brought to the table. 

“Haha, well it’s good to know that the Ludwig manor is just as amazing as I had hoped it would be. But you see, this manor is exactly what I wanted to talk with you about. I was hoping you would consider selling this place to me, or rather the town of Rottenberg.” His smile was wide and expectantly waiting Ludwig’s response.

Eric had to process what he had just heard for a moment. Sell the estate to the town?. “Vhat are your plans for my home if I vere to even consider selling it to you?”. His tone was slightly disapproving, but he interested in the mayors bold offer.

“Well the town council and I agreed that if we were to land a deal with you and buy this property, then we could create more housing and businesses for Rottenberg to grow. Of course we would never think of demolishing this great monument of our history. So instead we plan on making it into a historical hotel. We would renovate it so your family’s achievements could be displayed while guests could bring in profit. You would be receiving a portion of it of course. Also, with all that good publicity the less people would remember all those bad things some of the Ludwigs did. I was thinking you could name me a price on this place and we could negotiate from there, what do you say doctor? I think it would be a pretty good deal for you and the town!” Mr.Werner looked determined and exited that the deal could work out.

During the whole time Mr.Werner was talking, Ludwig was deeply thinking about what the mayor was offering. It sounded nice, and maybe if the mayor had brought this deal up the day he had first returned to the manor he would have taken the deal and ran. But with the laboratory hidden away, a place meant to be kept secret, there was a possibility of it being discovered when sold to be converted into a hotel. If that were to happen and for him to have signed away his rights to everything in the manor, he would have no control over how the town portrayed the misunderstood side of his family.

His brows were furrowed before he said coldly. “Zhe Ludwig estate is not for sale, Mr.Waner.” He then stood up from his chair, since they had both been done eating for some time now, and placed his napkin over his plate.

The mayor blinked a little confusedly as he stood up and grabbed his cane. “Now hold on a moment, what seems to be the issue? I’m sure we could work something out. Is it the hotel? Would you recommend we convert this place into something else?” He spoke quickly, trying to piece out what the hitch was in the deal he pitched. 

“ _No_. Zhis is my home and I am asking you kindly to leave it. _Now_ ” Ludwig’s tone was cold cut and unwaveringly upset. “Schwartz! Escort zhese men to zhe door please." he called for his butler who soon arrived in the dining room. 

Schwartz could feel the tension in the room, but didn't ask questions. He went over to the mayor. “If you would kindly follow me, sir.” He said calmly yet firmly.

“H-hold on a moment. I’m sure we can work this out like civil gentlemen…” The mayor said in a last ditch effort to get the ball rolling again for this offer.

Ludwig didn’t even respond, though he gave the mayor a disdainful look before turning on his heels and leaving the dining room towards the master bedroom.

Schwartz felt a little uneasy about how that conversation between Ludwig and the mayor ended, but he did his duties and called for a car to pick up the mayor and his bodyguard. The butler let them wait in the front sitting room and offered them dessert or drinks to pass the time. Finally the car arrived and the mayor left. 

Ludwig had shut the door to his room and began pulling off his tie and vest. He was pacing back and forth in his standard outfit, thinking hard about what the mayor had offered and how badly he responded to it. It was too late now, and he stood by what he had said and done. Minutes passed as the whole conversation played over and over in his mind.

There was a knock at his door. “Come in Schwartz.” He continued his pacing, but the butler's steadily calm voice interrupted his thoughts. 

“Is everything alright young master Ludwig? What was it that the mayor said to make you dismiss him in such a way?”

“He vanted to purchase zhe estate. I vasn’t interested and he vas only going to push fuzher. Zhe coversation vas over vonce I had given my answer, so I told him he could leave. Simple as zhat" Eric felt some of the pressure lift from himself as expressed what had happened. He was in the right and he had no reason to feel so ruffled by his actions.

“Ah, I see. Would you like for me to make you some tea, sir? It might help calm your nerves" 

Ludwig reached down and fished the key to the lab from his sock before stand up straight again. “Ja. If you could bring it down for me, zhat vould be nice.” And with that he opened the hidden passage and descended back into the laboratory to continue his reading.


	7. Birds of a feather

The sun was shining through the singular open window in the hidden basement room. Ludwig was sitting at the desk simply enthralled by the writings in this particular journal. The tests and studies of attempting to bring things back from the dead were rather crazy, but he could see genius behind them. The temptation was growing to try his hand at some of great uncle Frank's tests. This idea was even more compelling when the notes claimed success with certain experiments. The tests proven successful were strictly animal subjects. A small step towards the main goal. Even these minor tests could be considered stellar achievements from an outsiders point of view. But, for a Ludwig, that wasn't enough to satisfy their curiosity. Not until the ultimate question was answered. Can a human be brought back from the dead?

The laboratory side of the basement was seeing much more attention now that he had planned on utilizing it. Ludwig had cleaned it up himself, despite Schwartz's multiple offers to do it for him or even just assist. Eric didn't want the old butler to mistakenly throw out the faded notes or old medical equipment or the vials filled with questionable liquids thinking it be only junk. The way Ludwig chatted and gushed over the items, it was like watching a kid in a candy shop. 

The most exciting thing he had been wanting to make use of in the room was the strange machinery that was up against the wall. This behemoth of a contraption was apparently made by great uncle Frank himself for the use of his research. The details of its proper operation and functions were explained fully in the book. This book had become Eric’s guide, and he intended to have his very own notebook to write in when he began his own experiments. 

The young doctor was fully inspired by his great uncle's work. He had even thought up of a plan to procure his first test subject. He was both nervous and excited at the idea of holding such power over another creature's very existence. Ludwig had already called a car to take him into town so he could get what supplies he needed. After announcing he was going out to pick up a few things to his butler, he made his way out the front door.

Schwartz didn't question him and simply said to keep safe and try and be back before nightfall. The old man was silently overjoyed that Ludwig was finally getting out of the manor for one reason or another. Schwartz was beginning to think that being cooped up in the basement all day with those journals was going to have a bad effect on the young master. As far as he knew, whatever it was Ludwig had been reading as of late had sparked an interest which urged the young doctor to go out for once. That was fine by him.

After a trip to the bookstore store to pick a writing journal, Ludwig made his way to the pet store. He thought things through enough to know that asking for a dead animal from a pet shop might raise a few red flags. So, he decided to settle on having to end the animal's life himself. It wasn’t the most comforting of ideas, but his confidence in bringing it back from the dead was what made him think he could go through with it. He would have to live with himself if the animal didn't make ot back from the experiment. 

The door to the pet store chimed as he entered, looking a little out of place in his business-like attire. At the back of the store was a shorter woman, with her medium length brown hair up in a ponytail, not looking much older than her 20’s. She was next to one of the glass tanks cleaning out the interior. Ludwig looked around before walking in further to inspect the different specimens he could choose from.

She looked up from the glass tank and saw the oddly dressed man who had come into the store. Leaving the damp rag hanging on the side of the tank, she made her way over to him with a courteous smile. “Hello sir, I’m Tilly. Is there anything I can help you find today?”.

Eric looked down at her, keeping a rather serious expression. “Vhat sorts of animals do you keep here?”. He glanced over at a turtle that was happily swimming up against the glass tank. 

“Oh, we have all sorts of fish, rodents, reptiles, amphibians and birds! If your looking for cats and dogs, you might want to check out the animal shelter. There are lots of fluffy four legged buddies who need to get adopted there.” She said in a bubbly tone. “But, uh, do you want me to show you any particular animal in the store, sir?” Tilly grew a little tense at how stern this guy looked. “Maybe I could show you where we keep the snakes or lizards. We’re having a sale on the geckos, buy two get the tank 50% off.”

Ludwig felt a little overwhelmed by all this talking. He was only stiff because he had never really been good at socializing and he was not in his comfort zone with all the chirping, squeaking and other animal noises around him. “Uh, no zhank you. I vas more interested in vhat kinds of birds you had.” 

Her eye lit up a little and she smiled. “Oh we have quite the selection of avains this way.” Tilly turned and led Ludwig towards the tweeting, squawking and cooing. 

This part of the store was full of bird cages with fluttering flaps and bird noises filling the air. There were all sorts of colors that bounced about in the different cages. Cockatiels, canaries, a parrot, a cockatoo, parakeets, doves and finches galore. They all seemed to be healthy, and very happy to see Tilly. 

“Did you have a certain bird in mind, sir? I highly recommend a cockatiel for a beginner bird owner, but if you want to know more about any of these fine feathery friends I’m sure I can help you.” Tilly smiled up at Ludwig who was looking intently at the birds. 

Nothing too noisy, or too hyper. He intended to keep the bird if it made it through his experiment. Finally, one of the birds caught his eye. A snow white feathered dove, which was currently cleaning itself in the water bowl. “I am interested in getting a dove. Zhe one taking a bazh looks razher healthy. Vhat all do I need to best take care of it?” 

Tilly looked elated as she then chattered on and on about dove behavior and how to keep one healthy. Anything she suggested he get for the dove, he got it without question of price. The birdcage he purchased was intend for multiple birds, but the extra room was more for the dove to be able to fly around in than his intention of getting more. Just the one was all he needed for his first test.

“The dove you picked is quite the handsome fellow, do you have a name for him yet?” Tilly asked as she was ringing up the pile of items on the counter. 

“Um, No. Not yet. You see, zhe Ludwig's have a family symbol zhat is a dove and it is plastered all over zhe place back at home. I zhought it vas only appropriate to have a real one zhere for once.” He laughed a little, more like an embarrassed chuckle.

Tilly looked a little amazed. “No way. You’re that guy who lives in that big spooky mansion in the woods?! Oh no...uh sorry, that came out wrong" She looked down at the bird seed. 

“Zhat’s alright, I know how people perceive zhe estate. It is much better to look at on zhe inside.” He felt a little more relaxed and smiled. “I’m sure zhis little dove vill be a good addition of pretty zhings to look at in zhere.”

Once finished checking out, all the things he purchased from the pet store were shoved into the escort car best it could be. The dove was put in a carrying cage and Ludwig had it placed on his lap as they drove back to the manor. Once getting there, Schwartz was puzzled when Ludwig walked through the front door carrying a bird cage with a dove in it.

“You bought a dove, sir?” the butler then peered behind Ludwig. He saw the car that was full of bird things and then looked back to his young master in silent disbelief. 

“Ja, obviously. Now if you could bring all of zhe zhings from zhe car into my bedroom, zhat vould be wunderbar. Also, I have a bird cage I need for you to assemble. Chop chop, it isn't good to keep my new pet cooped up in zhis small cage.” He poked his finger through the metal bars of the carrying cage and gently scratched the dove’s neck, which cooed happily in reply to the attention. 

Schwartz nodded and went to work getting everything out of the car and setting things up in the master bedroom. Ludwig was growing a little fond of the bird who cooed softly and tilted it’s head to either side now and then. As if the dove was questioning it’s new surroundings. However, Ludwig had to press down these feelings of sentiment, knowing what he had to do to this bird in order to further his knowledge of bringing things back from the dead. It was a cruel thing to have to be done to such an innocent creature, but Ludwig was not going break his commitment to the pursuit of knowledge. There was no turning back now that his mind was set on doing the unthinkable, bringing someone back from the dead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wunderbar= wonderful 
> 
> Also, animal cruelty and animal testing is not a good thing. I do not support it just because it's in this story and I wrote it. Be nice to animals!


	8. Testing, testing one two three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Looks like the next chapter will be delayed only until tomorrow. I have my first night of work and i' super nervous and excited that i can't think straight. But thank you for your patience!  
> (7-8-2018)

Failure. Another failure. This had been the second dove to have been lost. This one turned into an explosion of guts and feathers. Ludwig’s confidence was wearing thin and discouragement was eating away at him. The book made it sound simple once the required voltage was hit. The first dove had been a major disappointment. Ludwig had read over the notes on the machine several times, but somehow his inexperience with using the equipment caused the mistake of the first dove’s permanent demise. He marked his notes in his journal and chalked it up to applying the electricity for too long which cooked the birds insides. Eric was crushed at the death of the first dove. He didn’t come out of his room or eat for the rest of that day.

The second dove seemed promising, until he made a fatal mistake with the power levels which caused the poor dove to explode. He didn’t enjoy killing the doves, but he needed them as his test subjects to see if his uncle was just crazy or truly onto something big. He needed to prove the writings in that journal had merit and he wasn’t just chasing after a mad man's fanciful dream. But, he made himself a new promise. If he couldn’t get this next bird to rise from the dead, then he would move on to other things and leave this pursuit of life after death for good.

Tilly was surprised to see him again after the third time that week. “Oh, welcome back Eric. Need help with anything? How are your two doves doing?”. She stepped out from behind the counter. 

“Oh, um zhey are, uh, getting along vell. I vas actually considering a zhird and I know you have just zhe one dove left until you get more. I vas zhinking it over zhe past few days and just couldn't bear to have him avay from his friends. It also vouldn’t hurt to get some new bird toys vhile I am here.” Luckily his voice didn’t waver as he felt the sense of sadness come over him when lying to her about the first two doves. 

“Of course! I can go get him for you. I’m actually really glad you decided to keep them all together. That’s really sweet of you to consider the bonds they made with one another." Tilly smiled happily as she went to the back to fetch the last dove in the store.

Getting back to the mansion with the new bird, Eric quickly made his way to his room to avoid any pestering from Schwartz. However, when he got there and shut the door behind him the butler was already in there, dusting off some of the furniture. “Ah, welcome back sir. I see you’ve gotten the replacement already” His tone was slightly disapproving. 

“Shut up, Schwartz. I don’t need any of your underlying guilt trips. Zhis is zhe _last one_ ” He bit out the words bitterly as he pet the bird’s head before releasing it into the large cage. “I need to go down and study zhe machine more before attempting anozher experiment.” Ludwig said bluntly before going down into the laboratory. 

He spent the rest of the day testing dials, working with the wiring and reading over the notes he took from the two previous tests along with Fank’s old notes. Of course he had to tweak a few things, do some calculations until he finally settled on a method that would utilize all the information he currently had. Now came the most difficult part. The test subject was required to be dead for a certain amount of time for the tests to be viable. So, with his numbers checked and triple checked, he got the bird from its cage and brought it down into the lab. The dove cooed softly and gave Ludwig's hand a gentle peck, as if to say he wanted to know why he was being picked up. 

“It’s alvright little birdy. Zhis vill only hurt for ein moment. I vill bring you back tomorrow. I promise" Ludwig said softly as he picked up a syringe that was filled with a clear liquid. It was the same promise he had made to the other doves, but this felt more significant. He was giving himself this last chance to do things right. The dove wiggled and cooed in his hand, a little frightened as the needle was inserted. “Shh,shh, I’ve got you. It’s alvright. Just go to sleep. I vill vaken you tomorrow like nozhing ever happened. Zhat’s a good bird" He said softly as the dove slowly lost consciousness and then stopped moving entirely. Ludwig let out a deep breath. He noticed that it was getting easier to put them to sleep. He remembered what a shaky mess he had been after putting the first one down. Looking down at his hands, there wasn't even the slightest of tremors now.

Leaving the dead dove lying on the metal lab table, he washed his hands in the sink before going back up to finally have a small meal before going to bed. He laid awake most of that night, thinking over and over the exact steps he was going to take in order to bring the dove back to life. Sleep finally came in the early hours, but he managed to rest enough before the light of morning woke him. 

The sun was shining through a thin sheet of white clouds, but impending storm clouds could be seen off on the horizon. Ludwig had gotten dressed and went to breakfast. He ate rather hastily and very little before going back down to the lab. He had to prepare for this critical test that would decide if he would proceed with the study of reanimation, or let it go in pursuit of well founded medicine. 

He had put on his lab coat and pulled on some rubber gloves before beginning the experiment. The machine whirred to life when he flipped a large switch which let a few sparks fly. This thing was an electrical generator of sorts and it required some time to fully power up. When a little red light came on, that is what indicated that the machine was fully functioning. Ludwig turned a few knobs, moved dials and checked gauges before he was satisfied enough to take the next step. Administering the electrical charges to the dead dove was the most important and dangerous part. He took a calming breath before pulling a set of metal probes from their rubber holster. He then began zapping the dove with the probes that were at the end of long red and black wires which led back to the machine.

The first shock got no response, then he applied a second longer shock which caused the bird’s legs and wings to twitch. Finally, with one last short shock, he pulled the probes away in amazement as the bird flapped frantically to get off of it’s back then was standing on the metal table, looking around in what seemed like confusion. 

Ludwig was astonished as he quickly placed the dangerously electrifying probes into their grounding holsters on the machine and flipped the big switch off. The equipment powered down within a few minutes, but Ludwig was still staring at the bird in shock. The dove cooed and walked around the lab table, as if it hadn't just been dead moments before.

“I...I did it. I can't believe… it’s alive!” He shouted for joy, which in turn spooked the bird into flying, though it was more of a fluttering flop onto the hard stone floor. “Ach, sorry, sorry. Come here you.” He reached down to scoop up the bird in his hands before placing a gentle kiss to it’s head. This gave him a little sparked shock from the static built up in the feathers. “Ow, suppose I deserved zhat." He laughed softly as he brought the dove over to his desk to mark down some notes in his journal. 

_Log #3_  
_It was finally successful. I have decided to name this dove Archimedes, given his famous word ‘eureka’ meaning ‘I have found it’. I have finally found the basis of bringing things back from the dead. Now begins much planning towards the main objective, raising a human from the dead. I will be studying Archimedes further to see if any symptoms arise from being brought back. So far he simply seems clumsy and can't properly fly. Almost like he is trying to remember how to. He is rather cute when he looks to me as if I know the answer. Unfortunately, I am of no help to the silly bird and he will simply have to figure it out for himself._


	9. Searching for the one

Archimedes took a few days to finally start functioning like a normal dove should. His character ,on the other hand, was quite strange compared to the previous birds that Ludwig had incidentally killed before him. The first dove was calm and enjoyed playing with bird toys more than being with Eric. The second seemed much more interested in the mirror and shiny objects where it could see itself. Archimedes, however, was a strange and funny bird. He seemed to like Ludwig a lot. Especially when he was allowed to fly around in the laboratory, in which case he would make a few rounds before perching close to wherever the doctor was reading or taking notes. Sometimes when the dove was feeling affectionate, he would land on the doctor's head or shoulder, seemingly looking at his owner’s books and writings with interest. Other times, Ludwig was simply the warmest thing down there and the perfect place to take a nap.

Ludwig was back to the drawing board and in this instance, he was actually drawing. He knew he needed a feasible plan in order to reanimate a dead body, but getting the body in the first place was the major problem. This is why he was already thinking two steps ahead with this diagram. It was the outline of a human with dotted lines across parts of its body, segmenting the human diagram into parts.

Newspaper clippings were scattered on the desk. There were obituary snippets from the most recent newspapers. Most of them were accident reports that ended with someone dying. He was more interested in the deaths that ended at the hospital. If he remembered correctly from when he had interned there, he could likely steal a body from the morgue. Or rather, a body would mysteriously go missing if he managed not to get caught.

He knew the Rottenberg hospital well from his time working there during his years in university. As an aspiring doctor, Ludwig had to go throughout the entire hospital on a daily basis. He memorized the layout by going to assist a doctor with a patient or meeting another elswhere to a doctor with equipment for a surgery. Ludwig knew of the morgue at the back of the hospital. It was an easy way in and out with big back doors used for the funeral director to pick up the body for burial preparations. The only problem he could see from using this back entrance was that it often had some form of security standing there at all hours of the day. 

All he needed was the right dead body to bring back. This person couldn’t be too old or have had a loved one in town to recognize them. So a stranger would do nicely. Someone no one would put up a fuss about their body going missing. Ludwig was looking for a rather large body to work with also. This was because he planned to chop up the body for easy transportation. In that case he knew he would also need to reassemble it when getting back to the lab. A bigger body meant an easier time having to fit together the morbid jigsaw puzzle. He was now realizing he might need some help when moving the bag of body bits. Luckily, he knew just the butler for the job.

“You want me to _what_?” Schwartz blinked in disbelief as he wasn’t sure he heard his young master correctly.

“Ve still have zhe old car parked in zhe garage, ja? I vas vondering if you could take me to zhe hospital if I vere to need to go at a strange hour of zhe night.” He said again, enunciating more of his words to make himself clear.

“Why on earth would you need to go to the hospital at night specifically? Are you doing something dangerous down in the lab while I sleep?” Schwartz gave Eric a slightly stern look with hints of concern in his voice. 

Ludwig waved his hand nonchalantly. “No, no, no. I vas more curious if an accident _vere_ to occur, if you could still drive me to zhe hospital.” He said plainly with a slight shrug.

“Why yes of course young master Ludwig. I simply don’t drive you around now due to my constant need to be here at the manor. Doing all I can to help maintain this place takes up most of my time. I also prepare meals for you, sir.” he shook his head a little. “Simply not enough time in the day. The only usual occasions I need to drive is to go grocery shopping, sir. But to answer your question directly. Yes, I would be able to drive you to the hospital if ever needed." The old butler folded his hands together in front of himself. “I hope this eases any concern regarding my ability to take care of you in any case of you getting severly sick or badly injured.” Schwartz stated confidently to reassure Ludwig of the extent of his loyalty. 

It had been an odd conversation, but Schwartz was glad that Ludwig was planning for unforeseen incidents. Eric, on the other hand, was hatching up a plan to get himself a body from the morgue. But first he had to wait until the right candidate came along in the newspapers.

A week went by and there was nothing of real note in the papers. A few accidents happened, but none with people fitting the criteria. One had been close, but the body of the foreign hiker had been torn to shreds by the wolves that were known to wander the woods at times. “Dummkopf. If he vas such a great outdoorsman, he should have known better zhan to go off into zhese voods alone. Especially now zhat it is getting colder und zhe volves are more active." Ludwig said bitterly as he tossed the newspaper aside on the desk with a frustrated huff. This waiting was killing him. But, he knew it was best to be precise and careful who he chose, given what he had planned was not exactly ethical or legal.

Archimedes landed on the discarded, hole filled, newspaper and pecked at it a little before looking up at Ludwig when he heard him chuckle. “Ja, you teach zhat newspaper a lesson. Make sure it tells zhe next one to have zhe perfect cadaver I am looking for.” The dove cooed before pecking at the newspaper again. Ludwig got up from his office chair and picked Archimedes up from the desk. “I zhink it got zhe message. Good job, mein kleiner Vogel” He pet the top of the dove’s head with a gentle finger. 

The skies were a perpetual bluish-grey now that winter was settling over Rottenberg. The rain storms of fall changed to flurries of winter. The ground was usually covered with a thin layer of white powdery snow. Ludwig was bundled up in a few layers of clothes as he stood outside on the back porch. He looked out at the dead maze garden with a hot cup of tea warming his hands. He let out little puffs of air from his mouth, watching as it looked like rising fog. 

Schwartz poked his head outside the back door that lead into the dining room. “Sir, your breakfast is ready. Come in before you catch a cold"

“I vas outside for _ten minutes_ Schwartz, vhy must you vorry so much? I am a doctor, I know how colds vork. Germs cause sickness, not weazher by itself. I vould have to come in contact with rhinoviruses to catch a cold. Rhinoviruses peak in spring und fall, but influenza viruses peak in winter. So you should turn your vorries towards zhe correct sickness at zhe very least.” He smirked in a cocky way as he walked inside with his mug of tea.

The old butler sighed and shook his head. “I’ll keep that in mind, sir.” He seemed mildly annoyed as he went back to the kitchen. 

Eric didn't sit for breakfast right away. First, he went back to his room to bring Archimedes into the dining room, along with a small dish of bird seed. The dove was often well mannered and ate from the dish, but occasionally he would get into one of his moods where tipping the bird seed dish over and eating it off the table was more enjoyable. The bird seed was spread over the table that morning, some of it ending up on Ludwig’s food. The doctor didn’t mind as he ate it anyway. A little bird seed wouldn't hurt. 

He unfolded the morning newspaper and skimmed over the black and gray pages as he lazily ate. Poking at his food, his fork suddenly clattered against his plate when he gripped the paper with both hands. He read and then re-read one of the accident reports. It was perfect. This was perfect. Tragic. But exactly what he had been waiting for. 

_Russian man dies after an incident that had left him with amnesia. He was found with serious head trauma and was rushed to the hospital. Once doctors were able to get him stabilized, the man could not recall his own name. Sadly, this mystery man passed away last night, likely from the serious injury. If you recognize this man, please contact the number below..._

There was a photo next to this article which must have been from a sketch artist. Ludwig was over the moon and he let out a noise of excitement, which startled Archimedes. “Ahh! Zhis it it!! He’s perfect!! I must have his body!” He said resolutely as he stood up from the table.

Of course this outburst also caught the attention of Schwartz from the kitchen. He came out a little hurriedly with a cast iron pan. “What is it?! I heard a scream…” He had the pan raised a little, ready to fend off any invaders. 

Ludwig pet the dove to calm him down. He looked to Schwartz with a big grin. “I need to go to zhe hospital tonight. You said you vould take me if I needed to go. And I _need_ to go.” He put out his finger for the dove to hop onto, which Archimedes did just that. 

The old butler lowered the pan and fiddled with his apron a bit. “You seem perfectly healthy to me sir. Why, might I ask, do I need to take you to the hospital tonight?”

“I have to pick somezhing up for zhe laboratory, but I have to get zhings ready for it first. So, tonight ve have to go get it from zhe hospital. But, enough questions old man! I have zhings to do!” He said excitedly as he took the newspaper and Archimedes with him to the lab, leaving a half eaten breakfast for Schwartz to clean. 

The day felt like it went by quickly as Eric was hard at work in preparing for his ultimate experiment. Archimedes supervised as his owner was cleaning up the lab and messing with the weird machine he often liked to purch on. Once nightfall came, Ludwig had everything he needed for this exciting night of body snatching. He only hoped that all this work would pay off in the end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> mein kleiner Vogel= my little bird


	10. Hospital heist

Ludwig wore a dark outfit and brought a backpack full of supplies with him on his way out the door. He locked the manor up before descending down the front steps towards the waiting car below. Schwartz was sitting in the driver's seat with a rather pensive expression. Eric ducked into the back seat of the old luxury car and patted the back of his butler’s seat. “Vhen ve get zhere I vant you to park near zhe back of zhe hospital, close to zhe dumpsters. I vill go pick up zhe package und meet you back zhere. Have zhe trunk open and vaiting for me. Got it?” He sounded serious as he sat back. The butler simply nodded with a sound of agreement as a reply. This sense of uneasiness weighted on him though as he drove where his master wished to go that cold frozen night. 

The manor looked empty with only the gas lamps at the front lighting the old building. Ludwig looked out the window as they made their way out of the circular driveway. The basin of water at the foot of the front fountain was frozen over. A thin layer of snow covered gravel that paved the driveway. The chains pulling the iron gates squeaked and creaked as they swung open in the damp cold, a few icicles fell off as they jerked to a stop. The headlights of the vehicle lit the dark roadway ahead as they made their way into town. Tall trees passed by as they left the forested road and then thinned out as they got into town. 

The tall lamps lined the crudely cobbled streets of Rottenberg. Some lights still glowed out from frost covered windows of homes and buildings. Mostly, the town was closed up for the night. Everyone at home, snuggled up by the fires or in their beds. The low rumble of the car engine didn't seem to rouse any suspicion. It wasn't uncommon to get vans and trucks on delivery routes to come through town this late at night. 

Finally, Schwartz pulled into the parking lot of the modest Rottenberg hospital. Ludwig instructed him to turn off the headlights as they drove into the mostly empty lot. There were a few cars parked around, but it must have been the overnight staff and security. They pulled up behind the hospital, tucked away by the dumpsters.

“Here we are sir. Are you certain you don’t need my accompaniment? This doesn’t feel exactly safe.” He reached over and opened the glove compartment, showing off a well polished handgun. 

Ludwig lightly chuckled. “No need for zhat. I have it all planned out, Schwartz.” He reached into the backpack he had brought and pulled out a small case which he opened to reveal a syringe filled with a clear liquid “I don’t intend to hurt anyvone. Zhey vill just take a long nap as I get vhat I need from in zhere.” 

“So, you are stealing from the hospital, sir?” There was a hint of disappointment to his tone. 

“ _No_. Ach, it’s not really stealing, Schwartz. Zhey von’t even miss vhat I am taking. I’m sure it vill be swept under zhe rug after a veek.” He rolled his eyes as he opened the car door softly. “Now do as I said and keep zhe trunk open and lights off until I return. It might take me two trips, but ve are in no hurry if I put zhe security guard to sleep.” without waiting for a reply, he stepped out of the car and shut the door. Before moving towards the hospital, Eric pulled out a black ski mask and a pair of black leather gloves from a side pocket on the backpack. He put the classic thievery attire on before sneaking his way along the backside of the hospital towards the back doors leading to the morgue. 

He kept to the shadows and made it to the back door which had a light on for emergency fire escapes. He kept the sleep syringe in his back pocket in case he would be needing it when entering. Ludwig wasn’t exactly sure how this next part would play out, but he was hopeful that the night guard might have taken a bathroom break while he broke in. 

Kneeling next to the back door, he pushed the broken paper clip he had brought into the lock located just above the handle. He kept one part pressed down and jiggled the other piece a little and felt for the locks interiors to line up. Eric also paid close attention for any sounds of movement behind the door. Finally a soft click was heard and he turned the lock until the door could be pushed open. Cracking it open slightly, he looked for anyone who might have been posted at the back door. It must have been his lucky break to find that the morgue was completely dark except for the light shining through the far rectangular window on the door that led into the hospital. 

Ludwig slipped into the building and he could feel his heart pounding in his chest. This was crazy, this was completely crazy, but he couldn't back out now. He was so close. So close to getting the perfect cadaver for him to change the world of science forever. Eric quietly set his bag on one of the metal autopsy tables and fished out a flashlight and bone saw. Turning it on, he took a deep breath to calm his nerves. He needed to work quickly if he wanted to avoid getting caught up in the rotation of the security guards. 

First, he located the drawer that the mystery russian man was being kept on ice. The toe tag respectively calling him “john doe" and had the time of death, which correlated with the story in the newspaper. After pulling out the body, he needed to begin the dismembering part. He was worried this might take him the most time, and he had seriously underestimated the size of this man. He set the flashlight in a place which would help him see best and also allow him to work with both his hands. Before starting, he took two of the empty body bags that were kept down there and opened them up to put the body parts in. Ludwig kept the window on the door in the corner of his eye as he got to work sawing apart his soon to be test subject. 

He had gotten done with piecing apart the arms and legs just before he heard the sound of footsteps. They were coming down the hall, just outside the door to the hospital. Eric felt his heart leap into his throat as he set the saw down and turned off the flashlight. His best plan of attack would be to get the jump on the guard if they did come in to discover the partially butchered corpse. He kept waiting on the side of the door so that if this guard entered, it would be lights out for them. 

The jingling of keys were what got Ludwig to tense up. He reached behind him and took hold of the syringe filled with powerful sleep inducing medicine. The lock on the door clicked and the light of a flashlight could be seen seeping into the dark room from the hallway. The security guard was a short but rather built guy. 

The guard pushed open the door and stepped in, lifting the flashlight to inspect the room. He immediately saw that one of the drawers was opened and a bone saw was resting against where an arm should have been on the body. “Wh-what the hell is goin’ on in here?”. He stepped further into the room and frantically moved his light around to see if someone was hiding back in the farther areas of the morgue. Next thing he felt was a jabbing pain to the back of his neck. “Ow!”. The night guard spun around to see a guy in a ski mask, holding an empty syringe. He quickly switched the flashlight to be in his less dominant hand and he drew his gun to point it at the masked figure. “Put your goddamn hands up! You’re under arrest for breaking and entering, not to mention you just assaulted me with a needle!”. His voice was commanding and he kept his gun pointed at the mysterious figure. 

Ludwig dropped the syringe and lifted his hands in a surrendering manner. He was feeling both fear and adrenaline rushing through him as the gun was aimed at him. The sleep sirum he injected the guard with needed to work, it _had_ to work or else he was about to be sent to jail for a long time seeing as he was in quite a bit of trouble now. He didn’t say a word, still trying to keep his cool and trust that the security guard would pass out in a moment or two. 

“Good. Now let’s take off that mask and see who we’re dealing with” The guard kept the gun and flashlight raised, but took a step forward and nodded, gesturing for this intruder to take off the mask.


	11. For a good reason

Like a deer in headlights. The security guard had his flashlight and gun raised at the intruder. He was expecting the thief to remove their mask so he could identify them. Ludwig knew that doing so would not only be the end of his experimenting, but also a very long jail sentence attached. So, he resulted to standing there like a statue, with his hands still raised in submission. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself down. The only hope was to stall long enough to give the sleeping drugs a little more time to take the guard to dream land. 

“Come on, I don’t have all night. Take off that ridiculous mask. Seriously you look like you were trying to rob a convenience store, you sick corpse stealing freak". The guard said impatiently. It was just as he was going to step closer that Eric could see the slight stumble in his step. The guard’s feet didn't seem to want to cooperate. He took a stumbling step forward then glared at the masked thief. “What did you do to me??… what was… in... that… syringe?”. The security officer's eyes blinked slowly, tiredly, before it was lights out and he crumpled to the floor. The gun and flashlight clattering as they hit the ground.

“ _Scheisse, scheisse, scheisse. Gottverdammt, zhat vas close_ ”. Ludwig clutched his chest before getting back to the task at hand. He quickly put the gun into the guard’s holster and put the flashlight back also. The door to the morgue was shut and locked again. His heart was still pounding, but he had to keep focused. Turning on his own flashlight, Ludwig began finishing dismembering the rest of the Russian’s body. The parts were put into the two seperate body bags so he could carry them to the car. But before he could leave the morgue, Eric had decided on the perfect place to let the night guard sleep off the medicine. 

The drawer that his test subject had been laying in was now empty, and he couldn't risk the guard waking up and immediately going to the phones to call the police. So, the next best thing was to put the sleeping guard where there was now a vacancy. It took some effort, but he managed to lift the passed out security guard and lay him on the cold metal shelf. Ludwig pushed the shelf back into the small confines of the cold morgue cabinet. Ludwig pushed the pin into the door, locking the guard into the morbid bed. He picked up his flashlight then hoisted one of the bags over his shoulder. It was oddly not disturbing ,in Ludwig’s mind, that he was carrying a bag containing the chopped up remains of a total stranger.

Lugging the first body bag back to the car, Eric laid it down in the trunk so there would be room for the next bag. He could imagine how difficult and heavy it would have been to try and bring all of the body at once. Good thing he thought of this method. He was quick about grabbing the next bag before hurrying back to the car and putting it in the trunk. Ludwig shut it softly before climbing into the back seat. He pulled off his mask, panting a little from finally getting to sit after all that work. “Take us home Schwartz.” He said with a small grin. 

“I hope all went well sir.” Schwartz sounded a little tired and still felt uneasy about this whole situation that Ludwig was getting himself into.

“Zhere vas a moment I vasn’t sure I vould be able to pull it off, but I managed to handle everyzhing. No one saw who I vas, und zhey should be fine once somevone finds zhem in zhe icebox.” He chuckled slightly out of amusement from the idea of that guard being found in the body shelves.

Ludwig instructed that they make a few turns in town to insure no one was following them. When all seemed safe, they made their way back to the manor. Both of them seemed rather tired as they pulled into the garage. It was very late into the night at that point. 

The doctor yawned and got out of the car. “Vould you mind helping me vis vhat I got from zhe hospital?” He went around back to the trunk.

“I have been curious as to what it was you brought home.” Schwartz froze when he opened the trunk and there were two body bags laying there. “Don’t tell me those are…”

“Ja, zhey are body bags. _Obviously_.” Eric rolled his eyes as he picked one of them up. “But no, zhey do not have two bodies in zhem. Just one body I had to cut into pieces for zhe convenience of moving.” 

The butler turned a shade paler. “Eric. Why did you take this, of all things, from the hospital?” He made a disgusted face as he picked up the other body bag.

“Oh, don't be such a baby. If zhings go right, zhese bags of body parts vill be whole again und zhanking me for zheir life in no time!” the doctor said enthusiastically. 

There was a long silence as they brought the bags into the manor. Schwartz finally spoke up to break the silence. “You know I have served this family for a long time, but I don’t think I have ever been pushed to my limits like I have since serving under you, sir.” That was clearly a passive aggressive comment.

Ludwig scowled a little. “I didn’t zhink you vould understand. Zhis is for a good reason, Schwartz. Trust me.” They made their way down into the lab. “I vant somezhing good to have come from zhe vork my shunned ancestors did. Bringing zis man back from zhe dead could be zhe start of it. Imagine it Schwartz. A vorld vhere tragic accidents could be erased by bringing zhem back from zhe dead!” He laid the bag down onto the metal work table and motioned for his butler to do the same with the other. "I just vant to change zhe vorld. I know zhis is vhat I need to do. I vas born for zis. To _help_ people." He rested a hand ontop of one of the bags and looked earnestly at Schwartz

The butler sighed and ran his hand over his face tiredly. “So long as your heart is in the right place, sir. And I suppose no one has gotten badly injured in the process. Well except a few doves and this fellow.” 

Ludwig put his hands on Schwartz's shoulders. “ Zhank you for your assistance tonight. Now, go get some sleep old man. I vill be expecting a late breakfast, my request is zhat you sleep in tomorrow.” 

Schwartz nodded and left Ludwig to do as he pleased. His old bones needed a rest and he was honestly not interested in getting involved in his master's work. The butler left the lab and now the doctor was alone with two bags of body parts on his work table.

Eric yawned, but quickly shook it off. He had more work to do tonight and sleeping could wait. Opening the body bags, he began by taking out the parts and laying them on the old wooden examination table where they fit back together. Once all the parts were laid out, he had to begin stitching them back together. Ludwig tried to make it look neat with only a few of the wire stitches prominently showing. It wasn't easy, but he needed to be sure this colossus of a man would hold together before he even attempted to reanimate him. 

The sun was peeking through the solitary window that was high above the lab. Eric had been working all night to put his test subject back together. He was just finishing his stitches when he realized he needed to do some repairs to this man’s skull. Of course he did. He remembered the newspaper report saying this man had taken on severe head trauma. So, he sawed through the top portion of the dead man’s skull to then try and fix the fissure in the bone. While he was at it, he checked on the brain to ensure it wasn't horribly damaged. Once the brain checked out as passable and he repaired the skull using his own methods, Ludwig reattached the lid of the skull back onto the subject's head using staples and stitching. 

The test subject was completed, though Ludwig had one last issue to resolve. How was he going to attach the miracle life bringing machine to this body without burning the skin from the amount of voltage required to bring him back from death?

Eric pondered this until a two metal bolts laying on the table caught his eyes. Yes, those would do nicely. The best place to put them would be the neck. It was soft enough to be able to screw in, and enough muscle to hold them in place. Not to mention they would conduct electricity close to the spine to jumpstart the nerves and close enough to the brain to get that working again. Ludwig mentally congratulated himself on how clever he was. 

It was perfect. He had worked all through the night and part of the morning, but he finally had his ultimate test subject laying complete and whole on the examination table. Just to be cautious, Ludwig had attached the metal restraints to the corpse’s ankles and wrists which were connected by chains to the exam table. He figured if this all went as planned and this person did wake up, they could potentially react violently to waking up in such a strange place as this. 

The doctor couldn't stop now, not when he was so close. Though fatigue was starting to settle on him, he was pushing himself to see this project to completion. Ludwig went over to his books and skimmed through them to check what levels he needed to maintain to zap a human of this size back to life. Once checking the numbers again, and again, he felt satisfied that it would work. He had gained enough experience using the machine to correct a problem if one were to occur. 

It finally time to begin the final test.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Scheisse= Shit  
> Gottverdammt= goddamnit
> 
>  
> 
> Stay tuned for the next chapter... Heavy will be in it >:)


	12. Who, What, Where?

The machine whirred to life as the internal generator started spinning up. Ludwig's excitement was only partially mellowed by the fact he didn't sleep at all that night. He had been much too busy preparing to see the culmination of his efforts pay off. With the body of the Russian man put back together and the miracle machine in full operational order, Ludwig was ready to begin. 

Dawning his white lab coat and rubber gloves, Eric flipped some switches on the machine and turned a few dials. The adrenaline coursing through him was helping him keep focused on what he was doing. Maintaining everything at a precise level was key. He monitored the gauges and checked the voltage until he was satisfied that they were stable. Finally he decided on using the metal clamps instead of the probes that he had used on Archimedes. These clamps would easily attach to the bolts he had put into the test subject's neck. 

Ludwig took hold of the clamps, seeing as his hands were protected from the electricity due to his rubber gloves. He opened them up and held his breath as he clamped them down onto the bolts protruding from the subject's neck. The electricity sparked between the clamps and the metal bolts as it coursed into the dead body. Eric counted to himself before pulling the clamps off for a few moments. After some seconds had passed he put the clamps back on to electrify the body again. 

The start and stop shocking method was similar to how one might use a defibrillator. This was simply the same idea, just using a much more powerful device that was supposed to bring back those whose who’s resuscitation time was long past. As he clamped down onto the bolts again, giving a much longer shock. He made sure the gauges on the machine were keeping level and corrected any that might have shifted slightly. He counted down before removing the clamps again. “One more time should do zhe trick". He said with anticipation as he waited for the perfect timing to reattach the clamps.

It was the final zap and he watched the sparks fly off the bolts. He was smiling like a madman as he expected the body laid out on his table to wake up with a start like Archimedes had. However, there was no such response and the final shock was to be finished by now or else risk frying his patient’s internals. Reluctantly, he took off the clamps and stuck them back into their safety holsters on the machine. He quickly turned the device off and looked back to the exam table to see if perhaps the big guy might have had a slow start. It didn't look as if anything had changed and doubt began to flood Ludwig's thoughts. 

He walked over to the exam table and took the manacle off the Russian’s right hand and checked for a pulse. His eyes lit up when he felt a very faint pulse. “I zhink...I zhink I did it? He’s still asleep, but I did it!” his voice slowly raised with excitement. “He’s alive!” He shouted with glee as he snatched up a stethoscope from the work table. Putting the earbuds in his ears, he pressed the flat piece up against the barrel chested man just to be sure it wasn't a fluke. There it was again, like music to his ears. The soft thumping of a heart beat. 

Tossing the stethoscope aside, Ludwig circled around the table a few times to see what the issue might have been with his test subject not waking up. Perhaps it was that blow to the head he had received prior to death? Or maybe one is especially tired after being brought back from the dead? He had so many questions buzzing through his head that he could hardly wait to ask his patient, if they would ever wake up.

But as he thought about why the once dead man wasn't waking, he realized now that the adrenaline he was depending on to keep awake was quickly fading. Exhaustion was settling in. Placing the metal cuff securely back around the slumbering man’s wrist, Ludwig felt it was safe enough to allow himself some rest. He was certain an hour or two worth of shut eye would be good enough to keep him on his feet for the rest of the day. However, Eric was conflicted on leaving the lab with his newly resurrected patient. But he knew he needed some well earned sleep and hoped the Russian man wouldn’t wake up while he was resting. The sun had risen more as Ludwig climbed into bed. He kept the secret passage opened just in case he needed to get down there quickly in the off chance his patient woke up before him. But for now, he slept off the fatigue. 

He was asleep for a good two hours before the echoing sound of metal clattering loudly, chains rattling and snapping, along with a loud roaring yell. This woke Eric with the startling realization. His patient was awake, and _not_ happy about it.

 

Everything had been dark and cold. When his eyes finally opened, the world was a blur of greys and muted color. He went to rub his eyes to try and clear the haze, but his hand came to a sudden stop as something jerked his hand back with a metallic rattle. His senses began to pick up his immediate surroundings more. He was laying down on a hard surface, metal was around his wrists and ankles, he was not wearing anything, and it was cold. 

Where was he? What was he doing here? And most importantly, who was he? As his thoughts began to stir, the world around him became clearer. Grey stone walls stretched upwards and he saw one window that had a chain hanging down from it. To his left a ways away were a few standing bookshelves with a messy desk and to his right was some complicated machinery standing next to two metal tables with all sorts of strange items and glass bottles of different shapes and sizes. Looking back to himself, he noticed the freakish stitches that were all across his body. His arms, chest, stomach and legs had this metal wire stitching, like he was some poorly sewn doll. 

He pushed down his growing fears, exchanging it for confusion and anger. A distant, foggy memory sparked in his mind to recognize that being in chains was _not_ a good thing. He lifted his right arm again and inspected the thick handcuffs around his wrists and then to the rusty chains that attached to the wooden table he was laying on. Something inside him was screaming to get out of the chains, that they meant something bad. He pulled at the chain, but it didn’t give in that easily. So with a harsher tug he grunted as he put in more effort. One of the chains bent and there was a small break in the link. He was so close and decided to put in everything he had to break free. “Rrrhaa!!” He yelled as he pulled with all his might, snapping the chain and freeing his right hand.

Eric hurriedly got out of bed and put on his slippers and glasses. His hair was a mess and he looked rather scruffy with his face showing some stubble. He wasn't sure how he was going to deal with this situation, but maybe calming the man down would be a good start. He rushed to the secret entrance and down the steps.

The next chain would be easier to break now that his dominant hand was mostly freed. He would need to find the key to release himself from the shackles. Gripping his left fist, he used his upper body strength and easily snapped the rusted chain, freeing his left hand. His feet were the last thing keeping him from escaping this place. As he was going to free his left ankle, he paused when he heard hurried footsteps coming from the opening behind him. This made him quickly break the chains so he could work on breaking the last of his restraints.

Ludwig made it down to the lab and saw his patient breaking the chains to his left ankle shackle. It was honestly a little terrifying to see such raw, brute strength. He ran his hand through his hair to try and look a little less haggard from just waking up. Taking a deep breath, he put up his hands to show he didn’t mean any harm. “Whoa, hey zhere...uh, buddy? Um, I can let you out of zhose cuffs if you promise to calm down.” Ludwig awkwardly sidestepped too keep his eyes on the big guy, making his way towards the metal tables to get the key, or maybe the sedative to protect himself from being attacked.

This stranger looked odd and he was definitely German from the accent. The stitched up man narrowed his eyes and watched where his captor was going. The metal tables had all sorts of sharp medical equipment on it. There was this instinctive response inside him to not trust this guy who had chained him up like this in the first place, or so he assumed. He didn't respond to his captor as he reached to break the last chain that was keeping him from escaping. 

“No, no. Let me take care of your restraints. I know you must have a lot of questions und I vill gladly answer zhem zhe best I can. You just have to vork vis me here, ja? So, please don't try and run.” He grabbed the key and also slipped a needle into his hand which had been close to the key. The syringe was was filled with the similar sleeping drug he used on the bodyguard at the morgue, but a dosage more potent for quicker results.

The large Russian man was clearly not dumb and saw the German man grab the needle along with the key. This made him hasten with breaking the last links of chain keeping him on the exam table. With the last chain broken, he quickly swung his legs off the side and landed uneasily onto his feet. He could feel that his body was a bit clumsy, so he used his left hand to gain balance by leaning back onto the exam table. Now that he was standing, he was towering in height and looked rather intimidating. His stormy blue eyes were narrowed in rage, looking down at his captor who was standing only but a few feet from him. Balling up his right fist, he finally spoke in a low and rumbly voice filled with bitterness. “ _You_ did dis to me.”


	13. Preperations for peace

This didn't look good. Ludwig was getting the impression his patient didn’t exactly want to listen to him. The whole situation wasn't going in favor of the easy way. The doctor frowned “I am trying to help you. I know how zhis must look to you, but let me explain. You-" His words were cut off.

“ _Nyet_. Dis could be trick.” The big guy said in a blunt and stubborn tone. He also seemed rather uncaring to his naked appearance. “I can not trust strange leettle man who has keys to shackles dat kept me chained to table.” He took a slight step towards the exit, but kept his eyes focused on his supposed abductor. “Now, let me leave. If not. I vill deal with you and find my own way out." He finally was able to stand without the support of the exam table behind him. He raised his fists a little, ready to take on this person if they denied him leaving. He was still unsure what to make of his well being. This german man must be the one to blame for the freakish stitches all over him, and even the loss of his memory.

Eric frowned and took a step to the side, getting in between the door and his angered test subject. “I’m sorry, but I can’t just let you leave. I am your doctor and you need to stay here for furzher treatment.” He held the needle between his fingers. “Now you can eizher calm down und let me explain zhe situation, or I can make you calm down.” His tone was just as stubborn and commanding as his amnesia stricken patient. 

This felt like an easy challenge to accept for the big russian man. He could effortlessly beat the likes of this smaller bookish looking man. “I warned you.” He scowled, not thinking twice as he pulled back his mighty fist, throwing a punch at the doctor. 

Even though Eric didn't look to be much of a threat physically, he could be quick on his feet. He easily dodged the brute’s predictable attack before plunging the syringe into his shoulder in retaliation.

Feeling the slight prick in his shoulder, the monster of a man let out a frustrated growl as he turned to face the one who was keeping him prisoner. As he was going to wind up for another swing at the doctor, his head suddenly felt very dizzy and he lost balance, stumbling forward a little.“What...did you do?”

The fast acting sedatives did their job well as the big guy became limp and fell forward, right on top of Ludwig. The doctor hadn't acted fast enough when he realized the sedatives had taken affect. He couldn't get out of the way of the toppling russian. With a thud, he was crushed under the weight of the nameless man. “Ach! You are _heavy_!!" Eric squirmed and wiggled his way out from under the passed out giant. 

Getting back to his feet, Ludwig brushed himself off and straightened his glasses. “Vell, zhat could have gone much better.” He let out a sigh and looked down at the snoozing man. “Now, vhat should I do vhis you, Mr.Heavy” He tapped his chin as he looked around, then the iron cages caught his attention. He knew what they had been used for in the past. Keeping innocent victims captive, to use for horrid medical tests. But this was different. Keeping the confused and seemingly stubborn russian in one of these cells wasn’t the same, right? Ludwig just wanted to help, and if anything he believed he at least deserved a ‘thank you’ for bringing this guy back from the dead.

So, with all the strength he could muster, Ludwig drug the big russian man into one of the cleaner, bigger cells and rolled him onto one of the old spring mattresses. It wasn't the nicest of places, but he knew this was the best plan he had at the moment. Taking the key, he removed the cuffs that were still around the behemoths wrists and ankles. Ludwig knew the sleep inducing drugs would wear off in an hour or so. He locked the cell door as he left and tossed the broken shackles onto the exam table.

“Alright, Heavy. You sleep off zhe drugs und I vill go get you some zhings to make you more comfortable." He said pointlessly to sleeping ‘Heavy’, or so that was what Eric decided to call him until he was given the man’s proper name. In the meantime, Ludwig decided to find some clothes for Heavy and have Schwartz make them both some food. 

Back on the main level of the manor, Ludwig got himself properly ready for the day. With a clean shave, styled hair and sleek outfit, he looked much less manic then he had earlier. Now that he was presentable, Eric went off in search for Schwartz, who was likely up by now and possibly making something to eat.

Having rested up from a night of assisted corpse robbing, Schwartz was humming softly as he was making brunch due it being so late in the morning. He heard the door to the kitchen open and didn't turn away from what he was doing. “Good morning master Eric. I was almost certain you would still be asleep.” 

Ludwig laughed a little bitterly at that statement. “I hardly slept at all, mein freund. I vas much too busy vis my newest patient. Speaking of my patient, could you perhaps double zhe order of food? He vill likely be hungry vhen he vakes up." The doctor grinned and waited for Schwartz to catch on. 

“Of course sir. I can make extra food for you and- wait a moment?” the old butler turned around and looked at Eric over his half-moon shaped spectacles. “You mean for me to make food for a dead man? Unless of course...your experiment worked, sir!?” He looked to be in shock and amazement as his pushed his glasses up his slim nose.

Ludwig couldn't help but laugh when the butler finally got it. “Ja, Heavy is alive. However, he didn’t seem very grateful for it. He didn't even give me zhe chance to explain myself before zhrowing punches at me like I vas some villain to him. So, I had to sedate him und put him in one of zhose cells down zhere. I vas hoping providing him vis some food und clothing might help him trust me more." He sighed, looking a little discouraged.

“There could be some spare clothing up in the attic. Would you like for me to fetch some for you once I finish cooking?” the butler went back to busying himself with what was on the stove top.

“Nien. I zhink it vould be best if I vent and got zhe cloths myself. I know his measurements best. I did put him back togezher after all.” Eric smiled and patted Schwartz’s shoulder. “I vould like for you to come down vis me to meet Heavy. I’m sure he vas just upset for vaking up in such an unpleasant vay. Hopefully vis some food he vill be more villing to listen.” Ludwig started to leave the kitchen but stopped just as he opened the door to leave. “Oh! And Archimedes should come too. Meet zhe man zhat vent zhrough zhe same procedure of being brought back from zhe dead as he did!” He laughed a little as he left the kitchen to go find some clothes.

The best he could find as far as big enough clothes to possibly fit Heavy was a large grey t-shirt and some black sweatpants. He guessed he should go out shopping soon for better fitting clothes. While Eric was up in the attic digging for clothes, something did catch his eye. It was a familiar black case that contained his violin. He had stopped playing it when he was younger, but he had the urge to bring it down with him just to have if he needed to clear his mind. He remembered how much his mother loved to hear him play. Perhaps it was time to give it another chance. He was getting skilled at bringing things back to life, so maybe it was his old violin’s turn to be resurrected. 

Carrying the bundle of clothes and the violin case down from the attic, Eric went to his room to put the violin on his bed. He got some of his own socks from the dresser to add to the clothes meant for Heavy. Ludwig folded the clothes neatly and set them on a table near the secret entrance. 

Soon enough, Schwartz knocked politely before coming into the bedroom with the promised food. There was clearly enough to feed two people on the silver tray he carried. 

Eric got Archimedes out of his big birdcage, letting the white dove perch on his shoulder. He picked up the bundle of clothes and went to the top of the stairs, motioning for Schwartz to follow. “I hope zhis makes a better impression…” He swallowed a little nervously as they headed down the steps into the lab.


	14. Proper introductions

The large man was still snoring away on the old ratty mattress down in one of the laboratory cells. Eric had his butler and his bird join him as he was going to try making a better impression to the one he was calling, Heavy. Schwartz had the tray of food and stood holding it, waiting for Ludwig's orders.

“You can put zhe food on zhe desk for now, but please don't leave just yet. I vant you to properly meet Heavy before you go back upstairs.” Ludwig was clutching onto the bundle of clothes like his life depended on it. He approached the cell that Heavy was in. Reaching a hand out hesitantly, Eric tapped on one of the metal bars and the noise reverberated around the lab. 

Schwartz could see the big russian man who was very much not dead and also not clothed, sleeping in one of the cells. An uneasiness washed over him, but he was getting the feeling that it was going to be a common feeling to have as he was looking after Eric. He went over and set the food down on the desk and stayed over there to keep out of the way of his master’s work.

As the noise of metal being thumped echoed through the room, it was evident that the sleeping drug’s effect had worn off. Heavy groaned as he was roused from his sleep. He rubbed his aching head and felt some of the protruding stitches that circled his bald head. Sitting up, he blinked a little as things came back into focus. “что случилось? Где я?... _oh_. Is _you_ again". He glared a little as he saw the doctor from before, standing a few feet from the bars he just noticed were between them. 

Eric cleared his throat a little and stepped forward. “I’m afraid ve got off on zhe wrong foot. I am Doctor Eric Ludwig, you are in mein private facilities and zhat man standing over zhere is my loyal butler, Mr. Schwartz.” the dove cooed softly on his shoulder, which caused Eric to laugh softly. “Oh ja, of course I can't forget to introduce my assistant, Archimedes.” He pet the dove gently on the head before turning his attention to his patient. “And I brought you some food and clothes, Heavy.” He said with a slight grin, trying to lighten the mood a little. Eric approached the cell a little cautiously and slid the clothes through the bars. 

The russian man stood up, making the cell seem much smaller now that he was standing. He looked at Eric with a stern and serious look and then took the clothes from him. “Heavy is not my name.” He began dressing, pulling the black sweat pants on, socks and then the grey t-shirt. The shirt got a little hung up on one of his neck bolts, but he managed to get it on all the way. Once he finished getting dressed, he somehow looked less monster like. 

Eric had stepped backwards after giving Heavy the clothing. “I know Heavy isn't your real name. It’s just a little nickname I have for you. I vill gladly call you by your real name if you give it to me.” He stood eagerly on the other side of the bars, far enough away to keep out of grabbing reach.

Heavy scowled as he thought deeply. He looked down at his hands, inspecting the wire that had been sewn around each one of his wrists to keep them attached to his forearms. His hands then reached up and touched the bolts protruding from his neck. “ _What happened to me_?” He said in a muttered whisper. Looking back up to meet his gaze with the doctor’s, he held an expression of frustration. “I do not know my name.” He said bluntly.

Ludwig wasn't the best at timing, and he smiled excitedly. He started pacing back and forth as he thought out loud, moving his hands as he spoke. “I knew it! Zhe damage his brain sustained prior to deazh is still affecting him. I only had a hunch until you confirmed it just now.”Archimedes wasn't a fan of all the moving and found a new perch on top of the machine. Eric stopped and looked at ,the now very confused, Heavy. “Oh, zhis is exciting! Schwartz, can you bring my journal over here along vis zhe food?” He waved his butler over.

The old butler nodded and tucked the journal under his arm before bringing over the tray of food aslo. “Where would you like me to set this down, sir?”

Ludwig motioned his hand over towards Heavy and took his journal out from under his butler’s arm. Opening it, he had a fountain pen tucked in the page he had left off. The doctor began scribbling notes in it as soon as he was able to hold it in a manner that allowed him to write best.

Schwartz got the silent message from his master and went over to the cells. He looked up at the large mountain of a man who was stuck behind the bars. “I hope you are hungry, Mr.Heavy.” The old butler was able to use one of the slots in the door of the cell to slide one of the plates of food on it. He held it there, waiting for the man to take it, hoping things wouldn't go sour and he would get strangled through the bars instead.

Heavy looked at the neatly made sandwich on the plate and took it with one hand, pulling it into the cell with him. “Спасибо… er, I am meaning to thank you.” He seemed to feel more calm compared to the first time he had woken up here, chained to a table. The cage was still not the nicest of places to be in, but he didn't feel as threatened. The food looked delicious and he was very hungry now that the butler had mentioned it. The doctor was still standing in front of his cell, looking as if he was lost in his own little world of writing. Heavy took a big bite out of the sandwich given to him, and let out a low satisfied hum of approval. 

This sound caught Eric’s attention and he looked a little surprised when he realized that other people were still in the room with him. He shut his journal with a crisp snap and held it in both his hands, tucking his arms up against his chest, looking a little embarrassed. “Ah-ha, sorry. I got a little carried avay vis mien vork. Schwartz, you can leave my sandvich on zhe desk und take your leave. Zhank you for your help and I’m glad zhe two of you have officially met.” He gestured to the butler and then to Heavy. 

Schwartz smiled a little and went to set the tray back down on the desk. “Yes sir. I am still very impressed by your achievement here. I’ll be upstairs if you need me.” and with that, the butler left the lab. The doctor and the patient to be supervised by a dove.

Ludwig set his journal on the floor before walking over hastily to the desk. He grabbed the chair that was at the desk and his plate of food off the silver tray. Eric set the chair down in front of the cell his patient was in and sat down, placing the plate on his lap. “I am sure you have many questions you vish to ask me. I can answer zhem best I can and vis complete honesty.” He was at the edge of his seat, so evidently excited to talk to the once dead man standing in front of him.

Heavy stood there, finishing the bite he had taken before responding. “Da. I have many questions.” He took another bite and looked at Eric.

The doctor nodded a little. “You must be vondering how it is you got here. Vell zhat is quite a story. You see it all started vhen-” He was suddenly cut off by the low russian accented voice. 

“Doktor talk so much. Give me simple answer.” Heavy took another bite and looked at Eric expectantly.

Ludwig blinked a little and cleared his throat. “Uh, ja. Hmm, simply put, I brought you back from zhe dead.”

This statement earned a long silence between the two men. Heavy finally broke the silence with a small chuckle. “Impossible.” He finished his sandwich with one last bite.

Eric looked a little offended before he set his plate of food down next to him with a huff. He opened up his journal and flipped through until he pulled out a newspaper clipping. He marched over and lifted the paper up and pointed to the familiar photo matching Heavy’s likeness. “Zhis is your obituary from a day ago. You vere found in zhe road vis a serious head injury und rushed to zhe hospital. It reads zhat you voke up vis amnisia and zhen died at zhe hospital later on zhe same night. If you don't believe me, read it yourself.” He shoved his hand through the cell bars and waved the little scrap of paper at Heavy.

The russian man took the little piece of paper from the doctor and looked at it. He squinted a little as he held it up closer to his face. The words were too blurry to read until he held it out a little further from his eyes. Surprisingly he could read the words perfectly this way. However, reading this made things even more unsettling for him. “I was dead?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> что случилось? Где я? = What happened? Where am I?


	15. Making a promise

Eric was standing a few inches in front of the cell doors. He watched as Heavy struggled a moment with the small newspaper clipping he had just handed to him to prove the russian had truly been dead. Ludwig made a mental note to check the man’s eye sight, and perhaps Heavy needed glasses. “You believe me now?”

“Da.” Heavy offered the paper back to the doctor. His hand was too large to fit through the bars completely, so the piece of paper stuck out between his fingers. “Is difficult to know dis. I was _dead_ ” the big guy frowned as he thought out loud. “What did Heavy do to get hit on head so hard? Was accident? Did someone do it?” He looked to the doctor for some kind of clue. 

Eric took the paper and went back to his chair, slipping the newspaper clipping back in it's designated place in the journal. He flipped the pages and started writing as he spoke. “Vhat brought you to Rottenberg is a mystery to us both, mein freund. I do know zhat you vill be staying here vis me for zhe time being. I need to make sure zhat my reanimation process is a long term solution for you. However, in regard to your amnesia. It is known for some who suffer from retrograde amnesia to slowly regain some of zhere lost memories. Given time for your brain to heal, of course. Zhere are rumors zhat claim certain activities, vords and images can help dig up lost memories. Unfortunately, I am not sure of zhe validity behind zhose studies and vouldn’t offer it as false hope.” He looked back up from his writings.

Heavy’s expression was stern and deep in thought as he listened to Eric speak. He took a moment to arrange his thoughts before speaking. “So, Heavy is un-dead man with no memories of past. No idea of own name. No idea behind reason of being in dis town. No clues to my death other den hurt head." There was another slight pause as he looked at his arms with the stitches circling around his wrists and elbows. “Why do I have all dees stitches? Also. What are dees for?” He put his hands on the bolts sticking out of his neck. “Heavy is like _monster_ ". There was slight disdain in his voice, more directed towards himself than anything. 

Ludwig sighed and looked up to where Archimedes was peacefully sleeping on top of the machine that was next to the cages. “Zhose stitches on your body are actually my doing. Cutting you into pieces vas zhe best vay to take you from zhe hospital morgue. Zhe bolts in your neck helped zhe electricity go throughout your body vhen attempting to bring you back from zhe dead.” He looked down at his journal, avoiding eye contact with the russian man. “You see, zhis experiment I did vis bringing you back… it vasn’t exactly _legal_ , or considered _ethical_ in zhe medical community.” He sighed and kept looking down at his journal full of notes, his thumb rubbing over some of his scribbled writing. “You see, I come from a long line of skilled und ambitious doctors zhat all have had zhere own field of expertise.” Eric looked over to his left at the bookshelves and motioned his hand over at them. “Zhis is my family’s life vorks. Und zhis lab is vere zhey vould practice medicine in zhe privacy of zhere own home.” Ludwig finally looked to Heavy. “I did zhis to you, but you don't look like a monster to me. To me, you are my greatest accomplishment.” He smiled a little nervously.

Heavy nodded slightly as he took in this information and noticed how the doctor seemed very nervous and tense. He thought back to their first encounter, which thinking about it now made him feel silly. He had thought this man sitting across from where he stood was some mad scientist with cruel intent. A new picture was being painted as Eric was explaining himself. “Heavy should apologize for before. Also thanking you for giving me second chance at living. I was wrong about you, doktor.” His stern expression melted into a soft smile. He rested his hands on the bars of the cell. “I vill do my best to be helpful with tests, _only_ if doktor promises something to me.” Heavy looked earnestly at Eric.

Ludwig relaxed a little as he saw the surprisingly warm smile across the larger man’s face. “Ja? Vhat is it?” He said curious as to what Heavy could want in return.

“Would like to remember. Promise me you vill try and help. Vill not blame doktor if he can not do anything for Heavy's bad brain. Just wanting to know how I died or who I was? If possible, you could find out. Promise me dis and I vill let you experiment with me all you are wanting.” The stitch covered man looked to the doctor,waiting for a response. 

Eric thought for a moment and then gave a small nod. “I can do my best to help you recover your lost memories. But if your brain is unable to do so, zhen I vill do my part in finding out who you vere by ozher means, ja?”

“Is good. We shake on it" Heavy opened up his right hand, placing the back of his knuckles on one of the horizontal metal bars of the cage he was in. His hand could only come out so far due to the size of the cage grid compared to his large hand. It was up to the doctor to reach the rest of the way to make the promise official.

Ludwig stood and left his journal on his seat before coming up to the cage with no hesitation like he had before. They had reached an understanding and he was relieved at how smoothly this all went. His hand was a bit smaller than the big guy’s as he put his hand on top of Heavy's and gave it a little shake of agreement. “I promise.” He looked up at his creation with a small smile before retracing his hand and pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose.

Heavy pulled his hand back into the cell once the deal was made. “Now, doktor should probably eat. Vill not bother with more questions for now." He stepped back from the front of the cage and looked around the empty little space before settling for sitting down on the old mattress. It creaked as the old springs complained about the big man sitting down onto them.

Eric yawned a little, covering his mouth, realizing he was still quite tired from the long evening he had had. “Oh, I had completely forgotten about zhe food. Und I do not mind zhe questioning, so don't vorry about it." He went back to the chair, moving his journal to the floor, and picked up his plate of food before taking a small bite. They sat in a bit of an awkward silence before Archimedes came flapping over to his owner. The bird had clearly come to see if Eric might give him something to eat from his plate. This made Ludwig chuckle slightly at the way his bird begged, by standing on top of his head and peering down at his food, cooing softly but in a, _hey, can I have some_ , sort of way. “Vhat a spoiled bird you are". He said quietly as he took off a small piece of lettuce from his sandwich and let Archimedes take it. To which the dove snatched his green treat and fluttered to the ground to better peck at it.

Heavy watched the interaction with curiosity and decided he had nothing better to do than ask. “Why does doktor have bird? Is reason, or just like birds?” His rumbly voice caught the attention of the smaller man who was just about to take another bite of his food. “Er, Sorry. Doktor can finish eating. Vill not bother again.” He said quickly after realizing he had just said he wasn't going to do exactly what he had done by asking a question.

“It’s fine. I don't mind.” Eric said reassuringly. It was quite odd to him that this goliath of a man was so very polite and not as brutish as he had believed from their first encounter. This made him even more curious as to Heavy’s lost details of his background. “To answer your question, Archimedes is a lot like you. Only in zhe sense zhat I also brought him back from zhe dead. He is zhe first of my test subjects to have lived zhrough zhe process of reanimation.” With the question answered, Eric took a bite of his food. 

Heavy watched as the dove pecked happily at the piece of lettuce. “You brought bird back from dead also. But bird does not have stitches or metal in neck like me. Why is dis?” 

Thankfully, chewing gave Eric a little time to think how to best answer this. He did say he would be honest with his answers, and being deceitful to a man he had revived just seemed rude in a way. Finishing swallowing what he had in his mouth, Eric replied in a rather calculated manner. “Unlike you, who I had to smuggle in pieces out of a morgue. I bought Archimedes at zhe pet store in town.” there was a slight hesitation before Eric continued with his answer. “A dove is much smaller zhan a human, obviously. Zhe electricity has no problem running its course zhrough all if its little body. So, seeing as Archimedes vas in his entirety vhen he died, und no bolts vere required to assist zhe conductivity. He doesn't have stitches or metal bolts like you, mein freund.” 

The russian grunted slightly at the answer. “So, leetle bird was “first" of test subjects. Means there were others.” It was more of an statement of realization than a question.

Eric sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “Ja.” He was troubled by the idea he had killed innocent birds in the process, but it was the better option than murdering people. Besides the initial tests were just for proof of concept. It would have been foolish to take such a risk on something that didn't even work. 

Heavy raised one of his eyebrows in silent surprise at the doctors remarkably short response. It seemed that the failed tests before Archimedes left a sore spot for the doctor. Realizing that he might have brought up a touchy subject, Heavy went quiet and didn't push further with questions. 

To both of their relief, the silence was not long as the well timed butler returned down to the lab to retrieve any dishes. He walked down just as the somber silence had fallen onto the room. Schwartz made his presence known as he made it into the room. “Good afternoon, sirs. I’ll be taking any dishes from brunch.” He already was at the desk, picking up the tray. Schwartz came over with the tray to where the two men were seated across from each other, one in the office chair, the other on the old dingy mattress in the aged iron cage. “It seems the both of you have talked things through.” The butler collected the plate from Heavy before going to Eric. 

“Ja, ve have made an agreement. I vill help him vis his memory loss, und in return he says he vill be a cooperative patient.” Ludwig held what was left of his sandwich as he let Schwartz take his plate. 

“Good, now if I might offer a simple observation, sir.” The butler leaned down and said quietly so only Eric could hear. “ _With all due respect, I don't believe you have ever kept any of your patients stuck in a cage, besides your birds, sir_ ” He straightened back up and looked down at Eric with a slight grin. “Dinner will be ready in a few hours.”

Heavy looked over at the two with a puzzled expression, as the butler whispered something to the doctor. He didn't question it, even though he might have liked to know what it was he said.

Eric’s eyes went a little wide as Schwartz spoke privately of something so obvious that didn't even register to him until just now. He felt a little embarrassed that he had kept Heavy in the cell this whole time, even after establishing that neither of them were going to harm the other. He would admit that he could be scatterbrained at times. “Uh, zhank you Schwartz. Ve vill be up zhere vhen it is ready.” The butler left after his master’s response. Ludwig stood up and patted his lab coat pockets until he found the key. “Ah, here ve go.” He went up to the cell door to unlock it. 

Heavy stood up when the doctor approached. His expression was hinting at confusion, which he acknowledged was a common feeling he had been having lately. “Doktor is letting me out?” 

“Ja, I vould have done so sooner, but I didn't zhink of it until Schwartz brought it to my attention. You could have said something about it you know.” He chuckled a little as he unlocked the cage door. 

“Did not think I was to be let out.” Heavy said honestly as he ducked a little while exiting the cell. “Heavy tried to punch you earlier. You are not mad?” 

“Ach, no. I am not mad. I can understand your initial reaction. It seems your fight response is much stronger zhan your flight.” 

The russian giant cocked his head to the side a little. “Heavy can not fly. Punching is much easier”

This got Eric to laugh a little and he looked up at Heavy with an amused smile. “No, no. I mean you vould razher fight zhan run avay from a possible zhreat.” 

Heavy crossed his arms. His cheeks turned a little red as he said under his breath. “I knew dis.”

Eric reached down and scooped Archimedes up from the floor and pet his soft feathery head. “I vill show you around zhe manor in zhe meantime. Zhat should give us just enough to do before dinner is ready.” 

“Sound like big house. Let us see it" Heavy said with slight excitement as Eric lead the way out of the laboratory, up to the Ludwig manor.


	16. I want to know more

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I went back and edited one thing from the first chapter. I took out the part where Ludwig is suppose to be 22 and just made it so he is vaguely aged as "adult". I find it better to just make up his age, or pretend he's between 30 and 40 years old by now.

Heavy was floored when they came up the stairs into the master bedroom from the laboratory. He felt like he had never seen a room this big or grand in his entire life, but then again he couldn't even remember if he had seen anything like this. The ceilings were so tall and the decorations were so elegant. He saw the doctor's expression seemed rather unimpressed, clearly accustomed to this place. Well it was the german man’s home after all. “Is big. Very...what is word… _sophisticated_.” 

Once getting into his bedroom, Eric turned around and pulled out his gold key that lead to the secret passage. He turned the key and the wall closed itself off, leaving the Ludwig family crest to hide any traces of the laboratory behind the stone. Eric turned his attention to his creation, who was marveling at the room’s grandeur. “Ah, zhank you. Zhis manor is very old. It vas built for vhen families tended to keep extended family in zhe same home. I’m not much of an architecture enthusiast, but I think it has gothic or baroque elements. I’m really not sure,but Schwartz vould know better zhen me vhen it comes to details about zhe manor’s history. I’m sure he’s talked about it before, but I have more important zhings to keep in my mind.” He shrugged slightly as turned to Archimedes birdcage, letting the dove fly inside so he wouldn't have to keep track of the little trouble maker.

“Whatever kind of architecture, is pretty" The monster of a man said as he walked over to the king sized bed, spotting a black case on top of the covers. He picked it up and opened the latches. “You play?” 

Eric put some new seed in the dove’s food tray, before turning to see what his new patient was asking of. He spotted the man holding his violin case and went over to promptly take it from his hands and close the case lid, clicking the latches shut. “Nien.” He quickly shoved it under the bed. “Vell, not for some time I haven't. I am sure most of my skill has vasted avay over zhe years of not practicing.”

Heavy hands recoiled when the case was snatched away from him. He kept his hands close to himself, feeling like he had offended the doctor in some way by touching the instrument. “Was only curious” He said with a hint of defensiveness.

The doctor quickly changed the subject. “Zhere is much more of zhe manor to see. Let’s not get distracted vis my room. It has very little interest anyvay.” Eric nudged Heavy towards the door. “Come on. Valking should be good for your muscles.”

They left the master bedroom and entered a hallway. The end of the hallway opened up into the main lounging room which connected to other rooms on the main floor. Eric showed Heavy to the dining room first, to show where they would be eating for dinner. Ludwig insisted they stay out of the kitchen for now, as to not distract Schwartz who was busy preparing dinner from the smell of it. Next, they went to the big ballroom that the Ludwig family had once held grand parties to celebrate their medical achievements with friends, colleagues and family. Then they went to the front entryway and the front waiting room which were of little note, though Heavy found them enchanting nevertheless. Especially the sparkling crystal chandelier hanging over the foyer. 

The office was more like a library in the image that the walls were covered in shelving filled with books. It looked mostly abandoned, except for the pile of mail on the desk that Schwartz sorted out daily. Eric had spotted that morning's newspaper on the desk that had a headliner regarding a security guard found in the hospital morgue and a missing corpse. While Heavy was distracted looking at the various types of literature, the doctor snuck the newspaper into the trash to keep his creation from spotting it and raising questions. The doctor knew he already told his lovely stitched up monster the truth of him stealing his body, but he did leave out the details about his run in with the security guard. Eric then took Heavy upstairs, showing him the vast amount of rooms up there. The doctor pointed out his childhood room, to which Heavy insisted he wanted to see.

Heavy was enjoying poking around in the manor. He was dazzled by the decor and how fancy everything was. In the main floor he felt a kind of familiarity when in the office. The smell of old books made his chest swell with a sense of joy and intrigue. He was definitely going to return to that room to try and pin down the source of that happy feeling. As he was led up the stairs, he noticed the large tapestry hanging up on the wall. It was similar to the carving in the doctor's room, that was actually the door leading down to the lab. He understood a few of the words, but the entirety of the family motto was lost in his attempted translation. When they got to the top floor, which was mainly bedrooms for guests and, or family, the doctor had mentioned the first door to the left had been his childhood bedroom. Heavy just had to see what his maker’s past room had been like. As expected, it was just as luxurious as the rest of the manor. He wandered the room for a moment before looking at the doctor. “You live alone in such big house. Where is family?” The big russian asked a little tentatively, aware that the answer was likely to be unpleasant. 

Eric was close to the bedroom door watching as his patient looked around his old room. The upstairs was cold and he pulled his lab coat around himself tightly as a slight shiver came over him. When he heard Heavy’s question, he was a little agitated that the subject he greatly wished to avoid was brought up. “I’m not alone. I have had Schwartz as decent company, zhen Archimedes and now you are here as vell. Sure you all are not blood, nor vould I put such a burdensome label like _family_ on zhe zhree of you. It is enough for me to have my butler, my bird und my patient to keep me company here at zhe manor.” He could tell by the look on Heavy's face that there would he more questions involving his family, but he hoped he had successfully avoided it for now. 

Heavy did give Ludwig quite the look of being unimpressed by the answer given, but he could tell he might want to save those questions for another time. He smiled slightly, understanding to go along with the doctor’s answer. “Da. Good to be here. Is nice home to be re-alived in” Heavy sort of grimaced at his own butchered wording. 

Eric didn't correct him, or bring attention to the mistake. “Zhere is not much else to look at upstairs. Mostly bedrooms,a storage room, und a parlor zhat has a bar und doors zhat go out onto zhe back balcony. It looks out over zhe gardens, but it’s razher cold outside. Does any of zhat sound of interest to you? If not, ve can go back down stairs und vait in zhe lounge until dinner.” 

“Do not want to be looking in more bedrooms. Parlor and balcony sound good” Heavy walked out of the lovely red and gold room as his creator followed behind, shutting the door as they went back into the second floor hallway. 

Eric brought them to an open space. When a switch was flipped to light up the room, it was revealed this room had a few tables and chairs along with a bar along the back wall with matching stools tucked in. It had once contained all sorts of alcoholic beverages for guests and extended family to enjoy without having to go downstairs. The bar’s cabinets and shelves had been long emptied. Any alcohol in the house was now kept in the kitchen or lounge. There was an empty granite fireplace that was adjacent to the bar. Opposite of the bar was three large floor to ceiling windows that had glass doors which could open out onto the balcony. These windows brought a lot of the cold air in and the parlor was particularly chilly. 

Eric shivered more as they stood in the empty parlor room. “Zh-Zhere is nozhing really of interest h-here in my opinion. Zhis place is m-much better in zhe varm s-seasons." 

The soft flurry of snow could be seen catching the orange light of the sinking sun. As if he were a moth drawn to a flame, Heavy walked towards the large window closest to where they had entered. He looked out the window and was hypnotized by the snow falling and collecting onto the balcony. Lifting his right hand, he touched the cold glass of the window. It was then that he felt something gnawing at his thoughts. He gazed out onto the white snowy landscape, past the dead hedge maze and onto the tall pine forests behind the property line of the estate. His brows furrowed as he felt his heart aching for some lost memory that was attached to this sort of view. 

Eric watched as Heavy went up to the window. He shivered and followed behind at a distance, trying not to hover too closely. “It’s a lovely view, isn't it Heavy?” There was no response from the usually attentive russian. “Heavy?” the doctor took a few steps and looked up at the taller man to see if perhaps the monster's brain had short circuited or stalled out. However, to his surprise he saw his patient, looking intently out the window with tears welling up in his stormy-blue eyes. A tear escaped and trailed down Heavy’s cheek. Eric was not much for physical interaction unless he deemed it necessary, and now he felt was one of those times. He lightly placed a hand on Heavy's arm to try and get the larger man’s attention. “Heavy, vhat is wrong? Vhy are you crying?”

Feeling a soft warm touch to his cold skin got Heavy’s attention as he broke his focus from the compelling sight outside. He looked down at his doctor and creator that was now suddenly standing next to him. He blinked the building tears away and quickly whipped his cheek, sniffling to gain his composure that he didn't even realize he had lost. He looked down at the smaller german man and gave a small smile. “I was remembering. Was something from before.” He looked back out the window with a weary smile as he placed his hands flat on top of each other, resting them over his heart. “Snows often where I was from. Dis cold is nothing to me. I remember tall forests too, and a wood cabin covered in snow. But dat is all dat comes to mind. Was blurry after seeing dis in my head. Do not know why I feel so sad for dis.”

Eric’s eyes grew a little wide as Heavy spoke of this small recollection. The doctor was pleasantly surprised that even this small fracture of a memory had been recovered so quickly after Heavy had been resurrected that morning. Ludwig smiled and patted Heavy’s arm a little in praise. “Zhat is very good to hear, mein freund! I’m sure zhat memory is connected to somezhing zhat is quite emotional to cause you to shed a tear. Perhaps more vill be revealed over time, but zhis is a good sign regarding your brain! I need to record your progress after dinner. Speaking of vhich, ve should be heading downstairs now. Come along, Heavy.” Eric turned on his heels and walked towards the hallway that lead to the stairs.

Heavy gave a small nod to Ludwig and he slowly followed behind. He glanced back over his shoulder to look at the windows which edges were hazy with clinging frost. Heavy muttered under his breath, a quiet wish. “ _Я хочу знать больше_ ”. Then he flipped the light switch to the parlor room and he followed his doctor back down the hall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Я хочу знать больше = I want to know more.


	17. Digging up the painful past

Schwartz had dinner set out on the dining table as the twosome came down to eat. The butler had the fireplace lit to make the room more comfortable for his master who tended to get cold easily. With dinner finished, Schwartz went on to take care of other chores before he would have to return and do dishes. This left the doctor and his creation to have the dining room themselves. 

Eric would have normally brought a book to read as he ate to keep himself from sitting in dead silence, but he figured that might be rude to completely ignore Heavy who was joining him at the table. Besides, he wouldn't admit to it, but he was glad there was someone else at the large empty table for once. Even though he knew the big russian man didn't exactly choose to be there, he at least hoped his beautiful monster would like staying here for the foreseeable future. 

Heavy was quite as they ate their evening meal. He was clearly deep in thought about what he had manage to remember. The snow, the trees and a wood cabin. He couldn't piece it together and it was eating away at him. He was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn't even realize how eerily quiet the room was because of his lack of conversation with the doctor. 

“So.” Eric finally broke the silence as he was beginning to get anxious about how quiet things had gotten. He wasn't usually one to strike up conversation, but he didn't like how dreary Heavy’s expression was. “I vas zhinking tomorrow ve could run some tests on you. Make sure you are functioning like a proper human should. See if zhere are any quirks to becoming reanimated from zhe dead. How does zhat sound, Heavy?” 

The doctor's voice pulled him out of his hopeless thoughts and he came back to reality. Heavy shook his head a little as he regained focus on what his creator had said. “Oh. Sounding like good idea.” He paused to think of a good response, but then a realization hit him like a ton of bricks. “Doktor. Heavy is experiment of yours, da? Having stitches and bolts in neck is not normal for person. Make me look like scary monster. So, I have question… vill Heavy ever be able to leave dis place?” 

Eric wasn't really prepared for such a question. When he was making Heavy, he hadn't thought past the point of what happened if the man had come back alive. His reanimated creation, unlike Archimedes who was now a pet, had some form of a freedom in being a human. However, that freedom was questionable due to all the pitfalls of existing as a person who was brought back from the dead in such a crude manner. “Uh, vell, mein Schaffung. I zhink it vould be best if you stayed here at zhe manor. I don't really vant to sound like you are my prisoner, but zhere are several factors to consider. I can't have you going out zhere in public order to protect zhe bozh of us from zhe people's discrimination. Zhey vould likely label me as just anozher dangerous Ludwig. Zhis is in regards to zhe side of my family zhat people love to speak of how zhey vere a bunch of mad scientists, pure lunatics. Und if somevone out zhere spots you valking around in town, zhey vould likely recognize you from zhe newspapers und freak out zhat a dead man vas valking around, looking zhe vay you do. Anozher unfortunate truzh is zhat even zhough I see you as my great accomplishment, zhey vould likely zhink of you as nozhing more zhan a freak, a _monster_.” Eric sighed and poked at the food on his plate with his fork.

Heavy winced a little when the doctor said that last word. _Monster_. He felt it cut deep, like he had some connection to the word already, even before he looked like a poorly stitched up doll. “Heavy sees point. Best if I stay in manor for now.” He agreed with a slight air of disappointment in his voice.

Ludwig could sense this topic was only making things more saddening for the russian. So, he stated in a more cheerful tone. “Don't vorry. I can get you anyzhing you could possibly vant to keep you entertained here. Just name it und I can do my best to get it for you. I don't vant your second chance at life to feel like a vasted one. Is zhere anyzhing zhat comes to mind zhat I could go into town to get you tomorrow? After ve are done vis tests of course.” He smiled faintly, trying to be considerate towards his permanent patient.

“Do not know what I could want. Will be telling you when I do.” Heavy said with a small smile, trying to show he appreciated what the doctor was trying to do for him. However, there was something his doctor had mentioned earlier that made him curious of the Ludwig family again. “Question. Why would Doktor be thought of as dangerous because of family? I am seeing how maybe bringing Heavy back from dead could be crazy. Is leetle crazy idea. But you are not bad person for it. You did not kill me. Doktor gave Heavy life again.”

Eric took a drink of the wine that had been served with dinner. Here it was again, the topic of his family. “Vell mein Schaffung, my family vas famous for zhere amazing feats in zhe medical field, I am no exception to zhis.” There was a slight cocky tone in Eric’s voice at the mention of his own skill. “As a Ludwig, ve strive towards helping ozhers by healing zhem in one vay or anozher. You no doubt you have noticed our family crest zhat is plastered around zhe manor. Vell, our family motto is stated as, _Zhe love of science zhat serves zhe heart_. It’s origin came from zhat feeling of joy one had after helping somevone in need by using our incredible understanding of medicine. Of course, zhere vere some in zhe family zhat took it a little differently. Zhey loved science, but lost zhere heart for zhe people zhey vere serving. Some Ludwigs began using zhe hidden lab for cruel experiments on living test subjects. Of course zhese deeds did not go unnoticed. Zhose who vere caught doing unethical practices vere turned into zhe authorities by ozher members of my family. Some of zhe guilty members fled in fear of prosecution. A rift vas made in my family line, und zhe metaphorical tumor of my heartless ancestors vas cut out of zhe family body.” He let out a small sigh and swirled the wine a little in its glass. “Zhe town has never truly forgotten vhat my family had done to zhem. Our name vas stained and zhe Ludwig house fell into zhe pazhetic state it is in now. I am zhe last of my family und I have doomed it by meddling vis forbidden treatments, like curing death.” Eric felt that his earlier attempt of being cheerful had been waisted by his long winded speech about his family's past. 

Heavy looked intrigued as the doctor went on about the Ludwig household. He now better understood Eric’s concern with being discovered about stealing a corpse and bringing it back to life. It was a rather insane thing to do, but Heavy could see his doctor had only meant well by doing it. “Were Doktor’s parents part of dis “bad side” of family?” Heavy quickly added to his remark, “Am not meaning to be rude.”

Eric set his now empty glass of wine back on the table. He smiled softly and shook his head a little. “Nien. I vould argue zhat my parents vere good people during zheir time of life, despite some of zhere mistakes.” His gaze dropped to his hands that were now fidgeting with the cloth napkin on his lap. “My mozher passed avay vhen I vas young, und my fazher vas not good at taking care of himself or me after her death. Luckily ve had Schwartz who vas loyal enough to stay, despite my fazher’s poor behavior.” His vision began to blur from the building tears as he spoke of his parents. Eric shook his head to try and be rid of his tears before he looked back up at Heavy with a more somber gaze. “I zhink I have had my fill of dinner and I am razher tired.” He stood up from his seat and set his napkin on the table. “I am sure Schwartz can help you if you are in need of anyzhing. Goodnight.” He said a bit bluntly, trying to push down the building emotions that threatened to break open the sealed up sorrow in his heart. Eric didn't acknowledge Heavy's words as he left the dining room in haste.

“Wait. Is doktor ok? Didn't mean to- ” Heavy watched his doctor leave without another word. He felt a wave of guilt for having questioned Eric of his family again, after seeing the signs earlier that the topic was rather sensative. The big guy felt bad for causing the doctor to dig up past feelings that seemed better left alone. Heavy finished eating in the new emptiness of the dining room. Only the crackling of the fireplace gave the room some noise to distract from the solitude. With dinner finished, Heavy felt it best to find Schwartz to inquire where it was he would sleep for the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Schaffung = creation


	18. The violin and borrowed glasses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just want to thank you all again for reading my odd little Frankenstein au fanfic. I'm having a ton of fun writing this and already have the next three chapters planned out! Lots of drama on the way. I hope you enjoy this chapter :)  
> You guys keep me motivated. Thank you.

That was embarrassing. Ludwig could feel that he had been too close to breaking down at the dinner table in front of Heavy. He couldn't help but remind himself that they were still getting to know each other despite their odd relationship of creator and creation. Eric hoped he didn't come off as too rude, but he had needed his space and privacy desperately in that moment. Taking a few deep and calming breaths, Ludwig was able to regain his composure. He was hoping this was going to be the end of Heavy questioning him about his family's past. The topic brought little joy to him, but there were a few a memories he did still cherish. One of which brought the doctor back to the instrument that he had tucked under his bed.

Pulling the black case out again, Eric set it back on his bed and opened the silver latches, revealing the polished wooden violin. He ran his fingers along the smooth surface of the violin. It looked well kept, no scratches or cracks, but he knew the strings would be badly out of tune. Taking a seat on the edge of the bed, Eric took several minutes trying to get the violin back into tune so he might be able to play it again. He remembered how much relief it gave him to express his feelings through the pull of his bow and soothing hum of the strings on his violin. 

Meanwhile, Heavy was busy wandering the manor in search for the butler. He had finally found the old man sitting in the office, looking through mail that hadn't been sifted through yet. The big guy cleared his throat before walking into the softly lit office room. “Do not want to interrupt. Was wondering where I was to sleep tonight?”. 

Schwartz set down the paper he had been looking through and brought his gaze up when he heard the familiar thick russian accent. He glanced at his pocket watch and snapped it shut before replying. “Oh, is dinner over already? Where has master Ludwig gone off to?” He stood up from the desk and pushed the office chair in. 

“Da. Doktor went to room" He paused and looked at the shelves filled with books closest to him. “He was tired. Told me to find you for place to be sleeping” Heavy turned his attention back to Schwartz who was walking over from the desk covered in mail. 

“I see. Very well. Follow me Mr.Heavy. I can take you to one of the prepared guest bedrooms upstairs.” The butler walked to the office door and waited for Heavy to follow. 

“Actually, I am not tired just now.” His gaze went back towards the books. “Maybe could stay in office until you are done with chores? I vill be quiet. Not bothering you. Heavy wants to look at books. Is alright with you?”

Schwartz sighed softly and gave a small nod. “I will be going to the kitchen to clean up. I should be back to finish looking through the mail. Afterwards, I will be escorting you to your room for the night.” He said as if he was a walking and talking schedule. “Just do be careful of the books, sir. Some of them are quite old and are difficult to come by. Ruining one would be quite tragic.” He said rather pointedly at the giant man before leaving the office to go finish cleaning. 

Heavy nodded with agreement of the butlers warning of keeping the books in one piece. He went ahead and started scanning the walls of books again to see if he could catch that feeling he had the first time he was in this room. It was as if one of his hazy memories lingered here. The smell alone brought a playful grin to the russian’s face. The musky scent of old books paired with the soft hints of fragrant wood given off by the shelving. He took in a deep breath of this familiar smell and let out a pleasured sigh. He looked at the spines of the old books that sat at his eye level. Of course a majority of the books were in german or english. He squinted a little and then remembered to take a small step back in order to read clearly. Heavy of course had no memory of wearing reading glasses, but he was certain he needed some. 

Before proceeding with trying to select a book, he lumbered over to the desk that the butler had been working at. He was sure a man of his character would keep a spare set of reading glasses in one of these drawers. Luckily he was right about his assumption and found a glasses case in the top drawer of the office desk. He opened them and found a similar pair of half moon shaped spectacles. They were very similar to what the butler was always wearing at the base of his nose and only pushed them up when having to read or inspect something closely. They might not have been Heavy’s precise prescription, but he tried them on and found it was much better reading up close with them then without. Sure they weren't perfect, but he kept them on as he returned to the wall of books. 

With his sight regained with the use of the readers, he was able to look at the books more effectively. Heavy saw many medical textbooks, some histories, and encyclopedias on this wall. Some books were easy to tell what they were about based on the wording on the spine,but some of them required for him to pull out and flip open to see the book’s contents. There was a warm and delighted sensation in the pit of Heavy's gut while flipping through some of the pages before placing a book back in the shelving. Little light bulbs began going off in his mind as he read the names of authors and book titles. He could recall some of them, he didn't know how, but he did.

Once he got to the more fictional, romantic and poetic section of the books, he felt a strong sense of realization wash over him like a warm comforting shower of discovery. “Books are _important_ to me. I _know_ some of dees writings. But why are books making me feel dis way? Am I writer? Do I collect books? Why books?” He grumbled slightly, feeling frustrated that he knew he was so close to figuring something out about his past. Yet the blockage of his broken mind was preventing him from searching farther into this memory in that moment.

Heavy gave a defeated sigh as he picked out one of the german translations of a collection of poetic works. He took a seat in one of the armchairs that had its back facing the empty fireplace. There was a wooden round side table next to this plush maroon armchair. Heavy sat comfortably in the sturdy looking seat and opened the old book. That bubbling of joy filled him again as he thumbed past the table of contents and introductory pages. He felt his head ache a little, forcing him to close his eyes a moment to try and will the pain away. But what came next was thrilling.

With his eyes still closed, an image began to appear. The scene was blurry, but it soon came into more focus. It was a lecture room with shadowy figures of other people present in the amphitheater styled room. At the front he could hear a Russian man, no doubt a professor, talking about distinct writers and there sentence structure and then the next moment it was the topic of the importance of imagery in writing. He gasped as he opened his eyes once the pain subsided. “Literature classes! Heavy was in school for it!” He let out a jovial laugh that rumbled and echoed through the empty room. “ _Books_ … literature is what I studied!” The big russian man looked down at the book of poetry in his lap with a new found sense of appreciation for the works of writings he was holding. “Dis is how I know you, old friend." He pat the page of the book endearingly as he looked through his borrowed spectacles at the printed text. 

Even though the book was printed in German, Heavy was able to translate enough of the words in the sentence for it to make some sort of sense. It also helped now that he could remember these writings, he must have read them thousands of times. As he read, at some point he just needed to translate the title and see the author to already mostly quote the poem by heart. Heavy was thrilled that he had found a missing piece of himself in these old books. If the stitches on his outer surface weren't enough, he was now sewing back together his past experiences and memories inside. His mind was like a patchwork quilt filled with empty holes. He was just slowly putting it back together, and hopefully Ludwig would be able to further his progress as promised. 

Just then, Schwartz entered the room, looking rather tired. He saw the monster his master had created was reading in the armchair, wearing a pair of his glasses. “Excuse me Mr.Heavy, but I’ll be taking you to your room now. I’ll simply have to finish looking over the mail in the morning, along with tomorrow's when it is delivered.” He sighed, feeling a little disheartened by his aging body and it’s growing need for more rest. 

Heavy looked up with a big smile. “Ok. Can I take dis book with me to room?” He stood up and made his way to the door that led out of the office. Heavy then realized he was still wearing Schwartz’s spare glasses and felt his face heat up in embarrassment. He quickly took them off and offered them back to the old butler. “Was borrowing glasses to read easier. Apologies.” 

Schwartz waved his hand, dismissing the gesture of the kind hearted monster returning the glasses to him. “It's quite alright, Mr.Heavy. You can bring the book with you and use those glasses as much as you need. Just be sure to put that book back where you got it once you are done. Now, follow me to your room, sir.” The butler turned off the office lights and shut the door, before walking ahead to leading Heavy to the guest room. 

Heavy followed behind, clutching the book to his chest. He couldn't wait to tell the doctor about his revelation on his knowledge of literature. They entered into the front entryway which had the stairs leading up. But they both suddenly stopped.

There was a soft sound, a gentle noise that floated through the air. It stretched from the opposite side of the manor. A quiet, sorrowful, song that rose and fell with the skilled movements of a bow on the strings of a violin. The enchantingly haunting music made Heavy pause in awe of the beautiful and heart wrenching melody.

Schwartz stopped as he also heard the music. He seemed more surprised as he looked in the direction of where the master bedroom was. “It seems master Ludwig has acquired his violin again.” He said in a hushed tone. “It’s as if he had never stopped playing.” The old butler smiled, it was a slightly sad smile. “If i am correct, this piece sounds like Vitali's Chaconne. Eric always did like a challenge” Schwartz turned back towards the stairs and then looked up at the tall russian man. “Speaking of his love for challenges, this way Mr.Heavy."


	19. Good morning?

The night passed peacefully for everyone in the manor. Ludwig felt at ease after he played his beloved violin and then retired to bed. Heavy was taken upstairs to the first room on the right, which was just across from his maker’s old bedroom. Schwartz had left the monster with the book of poems and his spare glasses before he returned to his butler quarters to rest. That night the winds had brought on more snowfall and cold weather from the north.

The reliable butler was always the first be awake in the quiet morning. However, today the sunrise came sooner than Schwartz had desired. He began his morning routine by getting properly dressed in his refined, classic butler, working attire. The next most important thing, especially during these winter days, was to go around lighting the fireplaces in the rooms most frequented by his young master. He would start in dining room and then go to the lounge.The fireplace in Ludwigs room would have to be taken care of once it was time to wake his young master for the day. With the two large fireplaces ablaze with warming fires, Schwartz was off to fetch the morning mail. After putting on an extra layer to protect from the cold outdoors, he went to the front door. Just as he entered the foyer, he noticed the large monster his master had brought back from the dead was coming down the stairs. He stopped with his hand on the front door of the manor. “Ah, up so early Mr.Heavy? I was going to wake you in an hour or so, like I do with master Ludwig.” 

Heavy had woken up only moments ago and dressed in the same attire he had been given upon his first day in the manor. His resurrection had felt much more distant than just having happened yesterday. When Heavy had gotten out of bed that morning, he yawned and stretched causing a few of his joints to pop. This caused a moment of dread as he urgently checked his stitching to insure he didn't accidently pop any open. He wasn't sure what would happen if any of his stitches popped or unraveled from keeping parts of him together, but he was sure it wouldn’t be pleasant. Before leaving the bedroom he was given to stay in, he picked up the book he had taken with him to bed. It had been laying on the side table with the reading glasses on top. He slipped the glasses into his sweatpants pockets and headed downstairs. As Heavy was descending the steps with trudging foot fall, he saw the bustling busy butler stop just as he had reached the front door and addressed him. 

“Good morning Schwartz. Is no problem. Woke up on my own. Was excited to tell Doktor about something” Heavy smiled warmly as he gripped the book a little firmly. He was not entirely aware of how chilly the manor had gotten since yesterday, but he could tell by Schwartz's extra layer of a thick black coat and white gloves that the weather must have gotten colder overnight. He was a well built, Russian polar bear who didn't mind the cold as much as most did.

It was very cold that morning in the master bedroom. Ever since the fire in the fireplace had gone out sometime during the night, the room had slowly chilled to the temperature matching the rest of the manor. Eric woke up shivering, and no amount of blankets seemed to help the cold that had settled over him. He got out of bed with a huff, and his mood turned sour due to the rude awakening caused by the plummet in temperature. He got dressed quickly, trying to limit the amount of time his skin was exposed to the icy air. Though instead of dress shoes, he kept his warm slippers on. This damn manor was too old and too large to undergo any indoor heating or cooling system without serious construction. That's why it had always been fireplaces lit constantly in the winter and every window opened in the summer. Ludwig was at least grateful they were able to put in some form of electrical lights instead of having to rely on candles like it was the dark ages.

After wrapping the throw blanket around him that had been at the end of his bed, Eric marched his way out of his room in search for his butler to complain about the cold. He was surprised to hear two voices coming from the entryway. It was clearly Heavy and Schwartz talking. Ludwig kept the blanket hugged tightly around him as some of it trailed behind him on the floor. He made his presence know as he grumpily stomped into the foyer where the other two were. His voice was irritated “Schwartz, vhy is it so gottverdammt cold in zis fucking manor. Vhat do I pay you for? _Freezing_ me to death?” The doctor didn't even look at his creation who was standing on the lower part of the stairs. His eyes were glaring, fixed on Schwartz. 

Schwartz did not seem fazed at all by Eric’s bitterness. “The lounge’s fire is lit as well as the dining room. Might I suggest you thaw yourself in either of those places until I am back with the mail.” He said calmly before heading out the front door. The butler clearly was not wanting to deal with his master’s crabby attitude that morning.

This left Heavy to be the one to try and bring the doctor to a better temper. The big russian couldn't help but smile a little due to the doctor’s irritable scolding and his butler’s cheeky response. Heavy could sense the tension fade when Schwartz left to get on with his morning routine. Turning his attention to the bundled up german, Heavy made his way down the rest of the stairs, clutching his book eagerly at his side. “Good morning Doktor.”

“I don’t see vhat is so _good_ about vaking up ealier zhen planned on, in a room zhat is freezing cold.” Eric replied bluntly as he scowled at Heavy, who was still only wearing a thin gray cotton t-shirt, some black sweat pants and socks. “How are you _not cold_?! You are vearing less zhan I am!” Ludwig said accusingly as he lifted the blanket with his arms to show he was fully dressed underneath. 

Heavy couldn't stifle a short amused chuckle. “I am used to cold. Do not be upset at Heavy for it. Let us go to lounge and let you get warmed.” He said as he went over to the doctor, wrapping one of his arms around the german’s smaller frame before walking them to the lounge. 

Ludwig’s focus on being grumpy about the cold quickly was derailed by the sudden contact Heavy was making with him. A big, burly, stitched up arm was gently pressed against his lower back as the large man was slowly ushering him to the lounge. The doctor wasn't sure if he should protest to being escorted in such a way. He was a grown man and knew where the lounge was in his own home. But, something inside him was preventing him from addressing it outloud, or even slipping away from the gentle push of the russian’s arm. 

“Heavy has good news to make cold morning better for Doktor.” The stitched monster smiled eagerly as they entered the cozily warmed room. “Remembered something last night while in office” He looked down at his maker, pulling back his arm that had been guiding the german man to the lounge. He lifted the book of poetry that he had been holding in order for Ludwig to see it. 

The doctor stopped once in the warmed room and looked up at Heavy with less irritation in his expression. Ludwig pushed up his round glasses as he read the title on the book’s cover. “Zhat is a book from zhe office. Vhat about it is familiar to you, mein Schaffung?” He said with a peaked sense of interest as he walked further into the heated room to take a seat on the two person couch that faced the welcoming fire.

Heavy followed behind, looking down at the cover of the book fondly. “Was in college and studied literature. Mainly Russian books, but I love all works of writing.” Without invitation, he sat next to Ludwig on the couch. 

“So you are educated. Zhat is nice to know. I’m glad you found zhis out Heavy” Eric said pleased, but seemed a little distracted as he looked into the dancing flames in the fireplace. The sluggish doctor was still between sleep and full awareness, and certainly in need of some morning coffee. 

Heavy could tell his doctor was still sleepy and the warmth of the fire was likely coaxing the german man back to sleep. He was a little disappointed in the lack of excitement Ludwig expressed, but he understood the doctor’s tranquil response. It seemed Ludwig wasn't much of a morning person. “Da. Is good to know leetle of past. Heavy also has reading glasses. Butler was nice to let me borrow dem." He reached into his pocket, fishing out the glasses to show Eric. 

Ludwig blinked to try and keep his eyes open as the warmth was pulling him back into blissful slumber. He looked at the pair of glasses and smiled a little. “I _knew_ it. I mean, I had a feeling you vere in need of reading glasses zhe moment you had tried to read zhat news article I handed you zhe ozher day.” Eric’s words were slightly slurred as he was drifting off to sleep again. After a few quiet moments, his head fell to the side, limpy resting against Heavy. 

This caught Heavy off guard as he felt the weight of the doctor pressed up against his side. Eric had definitely fallen asleep against him. Heavy could feel his face heating up as he looked down at the gentle and peaceful expression resting on Ludwig’s sleeping face. The monster’s heart began thumping a little faster in his chest as he noted how handsome the doctor looked. 

That soft black hair with a defiant section that curled to one side. Some of the hair close to the man’s ears and back of his neck was graying, but it only added to the doctor's distinguished visage. Those attractive high cheekbones and a strong jawline were strikingly handsome. Heavy didn't realize he had been staring down at his sleeping creator for that long, until a noise pulled his attention back up. His eyes went a little wide with surprise and he could feel the blush growing across his cheeks when he met eyes with Schwartz who must have entered the room while he was distracted. 

Schwartz had cleared his throat to get the attention of the monster that was looking intently at the sleeping Ludwig. The butler had gotten back from his mail run and had placed all but one of the letters back in the office. He had come to inform his young master of a rather interesting note he had received in the mail. He hadn't expected to see this rather close moment between the monster and his young master as he had walked into the lounge. 

Heavy reacted nervously with trying to get Eric’s attention by jabbing the sleeping doctor hard with his elbow, forgetting his eminence strength compared to the bookish german man. What happened next seemed like it happened in slow motion, yet there was nothing to be done to prevent it. 

Ludwig felt this painful jabbing sensation on his side, then falling, like it was the end of bad dream. He opened his eyes just in time to see the fast approaching pattern of the rug that decorated the lounge floor. “Scheiße!” His arms were uselessly bundled up in the blanket and he couldn't react fast enough to catch his fall. _THUD_. Eric landed face first onto the floor, with his body to follow. 

“Doktor?!”

“Master Eric!”

Schwartz rushed over and took one of his young master's arms. Heavy quickly stood and took the other arm of his fallen doctor. They both lifted Ludwig back to his feet. The doctor looked a little pained and confused with his round glasses resting askew on his face. “Vhat zhe fuck just happened?!” 

Heavy was quick to reply. “Am so sorry! Did not mean to hurt Doktor. Heavy was just trying to get attention for butler. Very sorry!” he sounded urgent in his tone and he reached over to straighten Eric’s glasses, but he got a firm smack on his hand before he could do so.

Ludwig swatted Heavy’s hand away from his face and fixed his own glasses onto his reddened nose. Eric tossed the blanket he had been covered with over his creation’s head and said in a rather bossy tone. “You can take zhat back to my room, und feed Archimedes vhile you are at it. Just fill his bowl vis seed und get him some fresh vater.” He said in tone that dismissed Heavy to go and do that. Next, Eric turned his attention to Schwartz. “You needed me for somezhing, old man?” His tone was serious as he straightened up his disheveled clothes and rubbed his sore forehead. 

Heavy pulled the blanket off his face and frowned slightly at the cold shoulder he was getting from his doctor. With a soft sigh, he slinked off to the master bedroom to do as his maker wished. It was the least he could do for accidentally knocking the sleeping german off the couch into a rug faceplant. 

Schwartz promptly handed his young master the letter. “This came in the mail for you, sir. I thought you should read it right away.” When the letter was taken from him, Schwartz gave a polite nod and took a step back. “I shall go get breakfast prepared shortly for you and your...Heavy.” The butler excused himself and went off towards the kitchen. 

Eric looked at the letter and a wave of dread came over him when he read from whom the letter had been sent.

_Mayor Arnold Werner_


	20. Chatting over breakfast

_Dear Doctor Ludwig_ ,  
 _I, Mayor Arnold Werner, have been able clear some time out of my busy schedule in order to meet with you the very day you will be receiving this letter. I was hoping you could join me for lunchtime in order to better discuss the proposition I had presented to you some time ago in regards to the future of the Ludwig estate. There will be a car coming to pick you up by 11:45 am, if you could open your gates ahead of time. I am eager to make amends with you, and most importantly for us to help make Rottenberg a better town._  
 _Mayor Arnold Werner_

Reading this just made Eric’s blood boil. Who did this guy think he was? Sure, Werner might have been the town’s mayor and had a bit of authority, but that didn't mean he could just summon Ludwig for lunch as if they were old friends catching up. As far as Eric was concerned, they were very much not friends, nor ever going to be. It took every ounce of self control to not crumple up the letter in his hands and toss it into the lounge’s fireplace. Instead, he folded the note up and placed it in his dress shirt pocket. 

Heavy haphazardly tossed the blanket he was given onto the doctor's large bed with a quiet disgruntled noise. He went ahead and put his reading glasses back in his pocket. Then he set the book of poems on a table that was close to the stone crest on the wall. Going over to the sizable bird cage with the lone dove inside, Heavy found the bag of bird seed to fill the bowl with. The sound got the attention of the dove, who cooed and fluttered over to the perch by the birdseed bowl.

“Good morning. Eat breakfast to become strong bird.” Heavy smiled a little as Archimedes was already pecking at the seed he had just poured into the bowl. The russian then got the water bowl and went to the bathroom to fill it before returning to the birdcage and slipping it inside. He gave a light sigh as he watched the bird eating. “We are not much different bird. Both brought back to life by Doktor. Both stuck inside big cages. You, because are bird and would fly away. Me, because scary for others to see and supposed to be dead.” Archimedes didn't seem too interested in the conversation the big man was having with him. Not raising his feathery head up for pause even once as he pecked at the seed.

It seemed that Archimedes wasn't the only one ignoring the monster this morning. At breakfast, Eric was in a rather quiet mood as he slowly ate. His thoughts were focused on the lunch he was more or less forced to have with the mayor later on that day. The german man poked at his breakfast in with a rather grim expression. 

Heavy could tell something was wrong with Ludwig, but the source of the doctor’s dismal demeanor was misinterpreted as his own fault. “Doktor? Heavy did not mean to push you off de couch earlier.” His voice was a bit sheepish as he was the first to speak at the table. 

Eric looked up and flashed a weary smile. “It's alright, mein freund.” he sighed and set down his fork as he leaned back in his chair. “I don't mean to ignore you, Heavy. My mind is just elsevhere zhis morning.”

“Thinking of experiments we are doing dis morning? Heavy is ready for anything Doktor will test him on.” The russian said confidently as he puffed out his chest a little and smiled proudly. 

Ludwig put his hand up over his eyes, pushing his glasses down his nose in the process. He rubbed his temples and sighed. “Ah, I vish ve could run some tests on you zis morning as I had planned. Unfortunately, it seems I have a lunch arrangement to attend vis zhe damn mayor of Rottenberg. No doubt he vill be trying to negotiate buying zhe estate again.” His tone was annoyed, but he took his hand away from his face. The doctor's attitude changed to be a bit more lighthearted as he continued. “But all is not lost. Ve can simply conduct zhe tests vhen I get back from zhe meeting.”

“Mayor wants to buy big house? But Doktor is living here still…?” Heavy sounded a confused and slightly protective. 

“Ja, but I vould have sold zhis old place to him if it vasn't for zhe secret lab my family has been keeping zhere private journals und ozher questionable equipment in.” He folded his hands together and put them on the table, looking seriously down at the table. “Mayor Werner intends to turn zhis place into some historical hotel. Zhe land around it vould become homes and businesses. I understand how it vould benefit zhe town und give my family’s accomplishments some recognition. But after signing over zhe deed to zhe estate and allowing zhem to show my family’s history, I can't exactly control how my family vould be portrayed… especially if zhe hidden passage vas to be discovered and all zhe good und bad zhings down zhere vere exposed to zhe public eye. Nozhing attracts tourism like a hotel zhat vas a decrepit manor vhich vonce housed a family of mad medical scientists.” He groaned a little as he leaned his head back, putting his hands over his face. He mumbled between his fingers. “I suppose I haven't really been helping my family's reputation by stealing a dead body und bringing it back to life.” 

Heavy was silent as he listened to his maker verbalize his stresses. When Ludwig stopped,Heavy chimed in supportively. “Just say no.Mayor can learn to be disappointed. Is _your_ home. End of story.” He crossed his arms over his chest to punctuate the finality of his statement.

Eric dragged his hands down his face, glasses slipping back down into place, and looked at Heavy. “I vish it could be zhat simple, mein Schaffung. My hope is zhis lunch von’t be entirely miserable. Zhe mayor is a cheerful man, at least zhat is vhat I got from our first time meeting.”

Heavy’s arms came uncrossed and he picked up his fork, fidgeting with it a little between his big fingers. “Uh. Do not want to sound needy. But I have request for when Doktor goes into town.”

Eric raised an eyebrow slightly. “I’m afraid my shopping trip vill have to wait until tomorrow, but vhat is it zhat you vant, Heavy?”

“Um, books in office are nice, but would be nicer to have Russian translation of book. Would be nice to read without translating whole time.” Heavy looked at Eric with a small smile. 

“I can see vhat I can do about zhe book. I also had in mind to buy you more clothes. Somezhing better zhen vhat you have been vearing. If you care to look in zhe attic, you might find somezhing new to vear in zhe mean time. I’m sorry, I should have been better prepared for all zhis.” The doctor sounded a bit disheartened.

“No, is fine. Heavy is glad to be alive. Should not feel bad for helping me. Clothes in attic will be good. Do not be sad Doktor.” He reached over and patted Ludwig on the shoulder, leaving his big hand resting there for comfort. He flashed a charming smile to try and help ease his doctor’s worries. “Focus on lunch with mayor for now. Heavy will find things to do in mansion in mean time.”

Eric relaxed with a gentle sigh and reached up to place his hand on top of Heavy's hand. “Zhank you, Heavy. I’ll get you your zhings tomorrow. Zhis afternoon ve should really focus on your physical exam.” He lifted his hand off of his monster and stood up from the table.

Heavy took his hand back as his maker rose and fought the slight blush he could feel rising on his cheeks. He got up also and began collecting the dishes that were left on the table. This earned him an odd glance from Eric.

The doctor cocked his head slightly at his monster who had their dirty dishes in his big hands. “Schwartz can get zhe dishes. You know zhis, Heavy" 

“O-oh, yes. Was not thinking.” Heavy chuckled nervously as he awkwardly set the plates on the table again. Damn his flustered thoughts. “Will go to attic now. Hope you have good lunch with mayor.” And with that Heavy excused himself from the dining room, hurriedly walking away.

Ludwig grinned a little and laughed softly at the clumsy and slightly airheaded mannerism of Heavy. When his monster had walked off, Eric muttered as he went to his room to get better dressed. “Vhat a strange man.” He smiled fondly, thinking about his well built monstrosity that he had made.


	21. Chilly suspicions

“Don’t forget your coat and gloves, sir". Schwartz stood by the door holding both of these articles of clothing as Eric put on his black fuzzy earmuffs. 

“Danke, Schwartz. I should be back in a few hours. Try and keep Heavy busy. Let him read books,help vis your chores, go out und chop vood, I don't know. You’ll zhink of somezhing I’m sure.” He took his dark grey long coat and pulled it on before slipping on his maroon leather gloves with the soft cotton interiors.

“Very well, sir. I do hope your meeting with the mayor goes well. Do mind your temper though.” The butler said pointedly as he opened the front door, letting a gust of frigid air come rushing inside. 

Eric rolled his eyes but was suddenly greeted with a blast of icy wind to the face and he had to close his eyes as it caught him off guard. He stepped out into the freezing snow covered world. Ludwig had been inside for quite some time and this cold was the exact reason he had wanted to keep it that way. The doctor carefully trudged down the ice and snow covered steps in his winter boots, before stopping as he reached the base of the stairs. Here, a black vehicle was parked and the driver was standing at the back passenger door. The door was opened for the doctor and he stepped inside.

The drive to town took about five minutes, which would be about a thirty minute walk if one chose to do so and risk attracting wolves from the surrounding forest. The car was quiet and the driver was professional enough to keep it this way, though he was still polite. It was only now that Eric realized he wasn't exactly sure where he was meeting the mayor for lunch. This sense of uncertainty didn't settle well in his stomach. 

Once they were driving through the busier side of town, Eric discerned that he was likely being taken to the one of the only fancy enough food places for a mayor to conduct business in. Die Schwarze Kiefer Cafe. It was a dazzlingly decorated cafe with an elegant, yet traditional german style. And right he was. The car pulled up to the cafe front and the driver got out to open the doctor’s door. 

Eric was met with the cold air again as he stepped out of the car. He held his coat close to his chest as he hurried to the cafe door and pushed his way into the welcoming warmth. He said who he was meeting with and the hostess lead him to a private party room that had been rented out by the mayor. Werner was already seated with the same bodyguard standing in the shadows of the room. 

Werner stood with a jolly smile on his face as he greeted his expected guest with a friendly hand shake. “Ah, Doctor Ludwig. So glad you could make it on such short notice. Please, sit, sit.” The mayor gestured for Eric to take the chair across from where he had been sitting.

Eric shook the mayor's hand before pulling his gloves and earmuffs off. He set them neatly on the chair next to him and then draped his coat over the back of the chair. This table was clearly meant to seat eight or ten people, so it felt empty as just the two of them occupied the room, well technically three if the bodyguard was to be included. Ludwig took the seat across from Werner. “I vas surprised to get your letter zhis morning, Mayor Werner. I zhought it vould be rude to turn down such an invitation.” 

A waiter came in with a bottle of wine that the mayor must have ordered before Ludwig’s arrival. The well dressed server poured the wine in both their glasses before asking if they would need more time deciding. The need for more time was unanimous and the waiter left the room. 

“So, vhat exactly is it zhat you vished to discuss vis me over lunch, herr mayor?” Eric opened the menu and was looking down at it, gripping the edges of the laminated tri fold menu a bit firmly due to his growing nervousness.

Like most politicians, Werner dodged the question. “First, I want to catch up with you, Ludwig. A prestigious doctor such as yourself should be seen as a friend to the town, and any friend of the town is a friend of mine. We can talk business later.” He laughed, that stale, fake sort of laugh. 

“Ah, vell. I have been keeping myself busy. It’s easy to keep focused on vork und researching vhen zhe weazher is so horrible.” Eric said rather emotionlessly as he closed his menu, having decided what he was going to eat. 

The conversation kept rather bland throughout most of the meal, until the mayor brought up the expected subject of the estate. “So, sounds like your manor gets rather cold in the winter without the aid of constantly lit fireplaces. I would be willing to help fund the construction needed to get it up to date on a proper heating and cooling system. You could get your lovely manor out of the stone ages. It’s the least I could do for a friend.” The mayor grinned as he finished off his wine, setting down the empty glass and looking across to Eric. 

Ludwig got a little tense, but took a breath and said calmly. “I appreciate zhe zhought, but I’m afraid I’ll have to decline your generous offer.” His finger trailed around the rim of his wine glass.

“What’s the hesitation, Eric? I mean, if you’re planning on staying in that big manor all on your own, you may as well be comfortable. Am I right?” Werner leaned forward, his usually cheery smile showing hints of cunning intent. “If the cold is such an issue at your manor and you don’t care to live in a home under construction, there is always the viable option of selling the place to me and buying a home in warmer climates.”

Ludwig narrowed his eyes and said with a sharp tone of anger. “I am _not_ interested in selling my home, nor am I interested in installing air conditioning. Zhe Ludwig manor has fireplaces and electricity, vhich is more zhan enough to keep me living zhere for zhe foreseeable future.” He began to reach over to collect his coat, before he was stopped.

“Wait, hold on. I understand. I don't mean to be so forward. Let's talk about something else, yes? How about your research? What is it you are doing to keep yourself occupied?”

Eric went ahead and took his coat, standing from the table and pulling it on. “I’m finding a better treatment for heart disease.” He said bluntly. 

Werner stood up also, seeing that his attempt to change the subject wasn't detering the doctor from leaving. So he would have to try his last resort. The mayor payed attention to what happened in his town. He knew of the incident with the hospital and the missing body. This sort of news hadn't occurred in Rottenberg for a long time. This morbid method of operation seemed to be familiar to the estranged side of the Ludwig house. “Good to hear you are diligently working on such an ambitious treatment for such an ugly disease. It’s also a relief to know a Ludwig had nothing to do with the missing body from the Rottenberg general hospital morgue.” The mayor said nonchalantly, but looked at Ludwig for some kind of tell. 

This caught Eric’s attention, but the doctor played it cool as he slipped on his gloves. “Zhe dead are of no concern to me, Mayor Werner. I am vorking on preventing more corpses from filling zhe morgue. Vhich sounds like a good zhing considering bodies are being stolen zhese days.” He said in a purposefully rude tone. “And as usually, our meeting has been... _insightful_. Have a good rest of your day.” He placed his ear muffs on before leaving the private dining room of the cafe. 

The mayor didn't try and stop Eric from leaving, but he still had his suspicions of the doctor. The reclusive Dr.Ludwig must have been hiding something behind the closed doors of that manor. He just _knew_ it. 

Making his way outside, Ludwig was too distracted to be bothered with the cold. He kept his arms crossed over his chest as the fresh layer of snow crunched under his boots. Eric had decided to walk home, using the time to sort though his troubled thoughts.

“ _Did zhe mayor know? Vhy had he brought up zhe news of zhe stolen corpse? Or maybe it vas just an assumption. Ja. Probably vas a reasonable connection to zhink a Ludwig might have a hand in stealing a corpse. But I had a perfectly good excuse. Heart disease is a noble medical pursuit…_ ” 

Eric kept busy with his thoughts as he walked through town back towards the manor. He knew he would be uncomfortably cold and numb by the time he got home, but he didn't really care at the moment. However, his worried contemplations were momentarily interrupted when he thought he spotted a familiarly large figure turn a corner. Eric shook his head and focused back down on his boots as he trudged along the mostly snow cleared sidewalk. It couldn't have been who he thought it was. Heavy was at the manor with Schwartz, not walking around town wearing a ridiculously flashy red and yellow knitted toque with a pompom on top.

The walk through town was relaxing and as his reflexion on the conversation with the mayor began to fade, his awareness of the bitter cold surrounding him was becoming more apparent. He reached the town's edge and continued down the smaller road that cut through the woods which lead to the manor. Eric’s teeth were chattering and all he could hear was the wind rustling the branches of the tall pine trees along with the soft crunching of snow with each step he took. 

It was known that wolves were more active in these woods during the cold months. Searching for food and sinking their teeth into anything or anyone that might be foolish enough to wander in their territory. However, the road to the manor seemed safe enough for Ludwig to consider walking on, despite the dense forest trees to either side of the cleared lane. He was about to learn how very wrong he had been in thinking the wolves wouldn't take notice.

It was quiet yipping and barking at first, then hurried scampers and unsettling rustling from the frostbitten foliage. These noises seemed to be getting gradually closer. Eric hastened his steps, pulling his coat close to him as he nervously glanced at the forest to his left and right. 

It didn't take long for the unsettling rustling in the woods to be right on top of where the frozen doctor was. Suddenly with ravenous growling, three wolves jumped out of the snow covered plants into the cleared path. A large wolf landed directly in front of Ludwig’s path while the other two slinked behind and stood to block their newly found prey from running. The lead wolf took a few steps towards Eric. It was baring its teeth and growling lowly. 

“ _Scheisse_...uh...g-good...doggies? You d-don’t vant to eat me…I promise”. Ludwig took a step back to which the other two wolves behind him barked warningly and snapped hungrily.

The larger of the wolves crouched, preparing to attack Ludwig. Things weren't looking good for the doctor until there was a roaring yell and loud cracking of branches that came from the forest close by. “RHAAAG!” In a burst of twigs and broken pine branches, a familiar large figure charged out of the forest and tackled the wolf that was seconds away from making Eric into dog chow.

Seeing the recognizable flashy red and yellow hat. The doctor let out a relieved, yet surprised, gasp. 

“Heavy?!?”


	22. The disguised dead man

The front door to the manor had just shut behind Ludwig who was off to his meeting with the mayor. It seemed like it had been a while since Schwartz was left in the manor by himself. Well that wasn't exactly true in this case. The monster had gone off somewhere in the manor after having had breakfast with Eric. The butler hadn't cared enough to notice exactly where that had been. But, if the undead russian was keeping himself busy, that was simply one less thing Schwartz had to keep track of. 

A different set of clothes sounded nice after wearing the same thing for this long. Heavy had made his way upstairs in search for the attic. Of all the places his doctor had shown him in the manor, the attic was not one of them. Just a place that had been mentioned in passing. The big guy knew he could ask Schwartz where it was, but he didn't want to bother the busy old man. Besides, he had this feeling that Schwartz was only being nice to him because the doctor had made him what he was. He had caught the lingering side glances from the older gentleman. It wasn't looks of disgust or fear, more like worry over Eric, protective glares.

Wandering the top floor of the manor, Heavy looked through many of the doors that ended up just leading to bedrooms. He walked through the parlor and paused a moment to look out the big windows. A small, sad smile came across his face as he remembered the feeling of the first memory he had when looking out those windows into the winter scenery. He brought a hand to his chest before he shook his head and narrowed his focus back on finding the attic. 

Finally, after searching for a few minutes, he came across an old wooden door that was on the far side of the top floor. This looked promising, and once he opened the door it was apparent that this was in fact the attic. Boxes, antiques, covered paintings, trunks and chests of all shapes and sizes. The smell was musty and stale. Heavy stepped into the dark room and he found a thin chain hanging down from the wooden beam ceiling. Pulling it, a light flickered on to dimly illuminated the cobweb riddled space. 

Almost everything looked to have been untouched for quite some time, but there were two things that stook out to the russian’s rather perceptive eyes. There was a recently disturbed box and a covered painting that didn't have the same layer of dust or build up of webbing that other items had. His curiosity brought him over to the sheet covered painting first. He gingerly lifted the thin covering off the picture and inspected the image. 

One of the figures in the painting was instantly recognizable. It was a young looking Eric, standing proudly in front of two other people who Heavy figured were his parents. The father had the same sort of hair style, though thinner and grayer. The mother had those same strikingly pretty blue eyes. They all had a sense of cheerfulness captured in there faces.This made Heavy smile as he put the sheet back over the painting to keep it safe from dust.

Unfortunately, this discovery filling Heavy with a small sense of happiness didn't linger for long when a realization struck hum. This spurred his thoughts to what sort of a family he might have forgotten about. His mother. His father. Did he have siblings? Something about realizing this missing information made Heavy feel uneasy. Up until this point he had accepted the fact his memories may or may not all return. Not knowing who his family was caused him to have this weighty sense of dread. What if he did have a family and they were missing him, or thought he was really dead? What if he didn't have a family and there was no one who could help fill in the missing pieces he couldn't provide for himself? He tried to shake off these foreboding questions as he refocused on his goal for having come up here. New clothes.

Getting over to the box, he lifted the lid and found lots of old clothes. He wasn't sure who they had belonged to, but it seemed like he could probably fit into some of the articles of clothing. He pulled out a large puffy grey coat, with light brown fur that lined the hood, some long sleeved sweaters along with some T-shirts that reslebled the one was currently wearing, a scarf or two, some various winter hats, a few pairs of pants, a pair of black boots, and some gloves and mittens. Of course there was no underwear, which Heavy had been without since he woke up from being dead. He didn't care for the breezy feeling, but he would just have to wait until tomorrow when Eric when into town for better clothing.

Looking at his options, he chose a red sweater, some dark grey pants, and the black boots. He went ahead and changed where he stood, glad to be out of the slightly dirty sweatpants and grey T-shirt he had been wearing. As he got dressed into his new clothes, he had accidentally ripped the sleeves of the sweater due to his rather large arms not being able to fit through properly. The pants fit alright, most importantly none of his manhood was uncomfortably restricted. The boots felt a little too big for his feet, but his socks helped with that issue slightly. As for his shirt, he found another one of those T-shirts that was similar to the grey one he had taken off, except it was white.

With his new attire on, Heavy shoved what he had taken out of the box back inside and shut the lid. He collected his bundle of dirty clothes in his arms and returning back downstairs. The monster decided that maybe it was best to risk bother the butler to ask about the laundry. 

Schwartz was busy in the master bedroom, stripping all of the bedding off of the master’s king sized bed. When the monster walked in, the older man paused as he was taking the pillow casing off the first of six pillows. “Ah, Mr.Heavy. I had wondered where you went off to.” Of course Schwartz noticed the change of clothes and the bundle of clothes in the man’s sutured arms. “You can go ahead and place your laundry at the foot of the bed. And, if I may remind you, sir. You left that book I let you borrow on the table over there.” Schwartz made a pointed nod at the book of poems that was resting on the table close to the family crest. “If you are done reading it, please take it back to the office where you got it from.” He went back to taking the pillow cases off. 

Heavy nodded and dropped his clothes off on the ground by the foot of the bed. Then he went over to the table to pick up the book. “Sorry, did not mean to leave it here. Will go put it back.”

Schwartz paused his work again to look at the big burly giant of an undead man. “While I still have your attention. Perhaps you could do me the favor of going into the back garden and chopping some wood for the manor. I would be most appreciative of your help. The axe should be leaning up against an old stump on the right side of the manor.” The butler smiled a little, but his expression quickly faded back into working focus as he went back to what he was doing. 

Heavy gave a slight nod, though he noticed the butler seemed to be much more relaxed around him now that Ludwig had gone. Taking the book with him, Heavy went to the office to place it back where he had found it. It was snowing lightly outside from the view in the office. This only reminded him that he ought to put on more layers before going out there to chop wood. Sure he was fond of the cold, but he knew better than to not bundle up a little. 

It was a quick trip back up to the attic to get that big coat, a pair of mittens, a scarf and hat. The hat that caught his eye was a flashy red and yellow toque with matching yellow pom pom on top. He got a matching scarf with the same red and yellow striping. The mittens were a knitted red and had fussy white trim around his wrists. Heavy got all geared up for a time out in the cold. 

Passing a decorative mirror in the parlor, Heavy stopped and looked at his reflection. With all these layers on, he almost looked like a normal person besides his slightly pale skin. His stitches and bolts were now covered and he couldn't help but smile as he liked the look of being normal. Though, this sparked a devious idea. Looking like this, he could pass off in town if he kept his scarf up over his face. He wouldn't have to wait or rely on someone else to do his shopping. However, if he was to sneak off into town, he would need some money. Though, Heavy had a good idea on how he could make some money to purchase the items he wanted.

Chopping wood almost felt second nature to Heavy as he brought the sharp edge of the axe right through the log on the stump with ease. He was sure that the manor wouldn't miss a single arm full of chopped logs that he could likely get some money for in town. Besides, if Schwartz did notice the missing logs, Heavy was sure he could bring down one of the tall pines that was just across the stone fencing that surrounded the estate. Which was the next obstacle he needed to think about getting through if he planned on getting into town. 

After chopping a good amount of wood, at least enough to take inside when he returned from his venture, and some to take on the road, Heavy set the axe back next to the stump. He picked up just enough pieces of wood so he could keep it all tucked under one of his arms. Approaching the old stone wall, he could tell the maintenance on the fencing was lacking. Some of the stones were worn down and the cement holding them together was cracking and turning to rubble. 

Heavy was able to push a hole in a portion of the stacked stone wall. He used his shoulder to channel his weight and strength in order topple a weak section of the wall. The hole was just large enough for him to squeeze through if he sucked in his gut. First he tossed the recently chopped firewood through, before squeezing himself through and stepped outside of the estate's property boundaries. He could feel a rush of adrenaline as he was defying his maker's wishes to stay in the manor. Heavy didn't do this out of ill intent, he just figured no one would recognize him through all the clothes he was wearing. Besides, maybe he would be able to recall why he had come to Rottenberg if he was able to take a look around the town he had died in. 

He just hoped he would make it back to the manor before the doctor returned from his lunch meeting.


	23. I know you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the wait, yall!

Heavy followed the old stone wall that went around the perimeter of the estate. He finally made it to the front where the iron gates met with the road that lead out of the forest towards where he could only guess was town. So, he began the hike in the snow to go sell some wood and buy himself some more clothing and, if he had enough money afterwards, a book. 

The walk was long, which made Heavy grow concerned that he might not have had the best plan of sneaking out with no real sense of how far the town was from the manor. He didn't want to find out how Ludwig would react if he discovered that he had went into town against his maker’s wishes. But he fought through the urge to turn back and kept a brisk pacing of his steps. 

After about fifteen minutes,he finally saw the first buildings of the town from where he was on the private road. They were mainly houses, but as Heavy continued further in he found the shops and other various proposed buildings. There weren't many people out and about in this cold weather, and anyone he did pass by didn't seem to pay him much mind. 

Heavy was feeling a bit more confident as he saw a clock hanging outside one of a store fronts and realized it had only been about half an hour since he had left the manor. He now had an idea of how long the walk was and could guess when he should head back in order to beat the doctor home. Though without a definitive time of return from Eric, this was all still just a guessing game. 

Some of the shops seemed busier than others, but it was clear that people preferred to be indoors rather than out on cold streets. Heavy finally was able to spot an aged building that had a sign indicating firewood was sold there. Also, there was an obvious large pile of wood at the side of the building under a covering to keep the it dry. There were a few people gathering up some logs from the side of the building and bringing their bundles inside to purchase. The russian just hoped the person running the store was willing to buy some wood. 

The shoppers in the firewood store departed quickly after purchasing there needed fire fuel as Heavy entered. He got a few odd looks from them, but he didn't think much of it as he made his way to the front of the store. A burly gentleman was leaning against the counter and raised an eyebrow as Heavy set the wood on his counter. 

“That isn't my wood, the grain and bark is all wrong. What do you want?” The shop owner said in a rather confused tone.

“Was hoping you would buy. Is not much, but I am needing money.” Heavy said, his voice slightly muffled by the scarf covering his face. 

The gruff firewood seller looked at the pile of wood that this strange man had set on his counter. He scratched his chin and gave a slight nod. “Yeah, alright. I’ll take it. Seems like some good hard wood here. It’s hot burning stuff that takes a while to turn to ash. I’ll buy it” The cash register chimed as it opened and the salesman set some money on the counter before gathering the wood into his arms. “Pleasure doing business with you.”

Heavy nodded a little as he took the money, putting it in his coat pocket. He wasn't sure if he was getting what the wood was worth, but at least he had some cash to buy some things with. “Many thanks.” And with that Heavy exited the store as another person was walking in with some logs in their arms. 

First thing he wanted to buy was some underwear. It seemed like something silly, but he was rather uncomfortable being in public with how exposed he felt without this extra layer of clothing. So, Heavy stopped in the nearest clothing shop and was able to purchase some. He rolled up the boxers and shoved them into his other coat pocket, opposite to where he kept what was left of his money. He planned on putting them on later when he found a restroom, or maybe it would have been safer to do so when he got back to the estate.

It was one o’clock and Heavy had just left the clothing store. Now, he wanted to see if this quaint little town had a decent book shop. He had seen a library as he was walking, but he knew it would require an ID to rent any books from there. That wasn't an option. He kept a look out for a bookstore until he successfully located one. It was a corner shop with one wall entirely made of window to show off shelves of books on display. From what Heavy could tell, no one was inside browsing, but the sign on the door said it was open. 

A bell chimed as the door opened, but Heavy didn't see anyone at the front desk. This was odd, but he shrugged and made his way further inside to browse the books. He found the multicultural section that was lacking in size, but he was still hopeful for any book that might be written in his native tongue. 

Just then there was a surprised gasp followed by the sound of books thudding onto the floor. This noise came from behind Heavy to which he suddenly became worried that maybe one of his bolts or stitches might have been exposed. He quickly messed with his scarf and turned around to see who it was that had gasped. His scarf was fine, so what was the sound of surprise for? He met eyes with a smaller woman. She had strawberry blond hair that was pulled back into a long braid that stopped just between her shoulder blades. She had some freckles across her cheeks and chocolatey brown eyes.

“ _No way_...Misha?!”. The lady who had dropped the books had bent down to quickly collect them again, but her eyes never looked away from him. She looked to be in shock seeing this big man who was in her store. Once she had got her books back into her arms, she looked up at Heavy with a relieved smile.

This all just made Heavy nervous. Who was this woman? Why did she call him _Misha_? Was he supposed to know her? He settled for a simple response as he waved his mitten covered hands in a dismissive way. “Sorry. Must be having wrong person. I am not dis _Misha_ you talk of…”

She rolled her eyes as she organized the books she had been holding onto a shelf. “Oooh. Ok, sure. You rather be called Mikhail today? Fine by me. But I _know_ it’s you, buddy. That silly scarf and hat don't fool me for a second. Only thing is… the newspaper said you were dead? So, how could you be standing here?” she kept chatting, not leaving room for Heavy to speak. “I mean I wouldn't put it past the town’s newspaper to have swept you under the rug, so to speak. Especially after what happened that night.” She shrugged as she messed with the books. 

This conversation was just making Heavy even more anxious. This woman didn't seem to acknowledge the fact he didn't know who she was. “Uh, what is your name? I do not know you book lady. Is dis your shop? Is very nice.” He said with a wavering tone of confusion as he tilted his head to the side. 

She stopped what she was doing and looked at him just as confused. “It’s me, _Blair_. You know… book buddies?” The book shop owner looked a little hurt by how Misha was acting towards her. “You’re not mad at me are you? You said you had it all handled.” She paused and her hurt expression turned to slight frustration. “Damn it, Misha. I knew I shouldn't have left you to deal with that mess on your own. Look, _I’m sorry_. Is that what you want me to say??”

Heavy’s concern switched to frustration as this Blair lady was getting upset at him for no apparent reason. “I do not know you! I woke up with no memories of myself. I don't remember you woman!” He raised his voice to try and get his point across to her. 

There was a long pause between the both of them. Blair seemed to back down a little and she looked saddened. “So the newspaper was right about one thing, you really did get amnesia. But at least you’re not dead, so that's good.” She walked past him and grabbed a book off the shelf he had been looking at before. “I ordered this for you before things got messy at the club and I guess your brains got knocked loose.” She held the book so he could see it. 

A book of Russian poetry. His eyes lit up a little as the cover was printed in his native language. “Oh, thank you.” He reached to take the book from her, but she pulled it away. 

Blair smiled a little and turned on her heels, her braid whipping around to rest on her shoulder as she looked behind her. She waved the book a little. “Nuh, uh. I’m not letting you have this until you say your name. And say it like you mean it.” She sauntered her way over to the front check out. 

Heavy followed her to the register. “I can pay for book.” He said as he reached into his pocket. 

Blair set the book down with a loud thud. “That’s not your name, buddy. Come on. Say your name and you can have the book.” She opened the pages and flipped through them as she slipped a little piece of paper into one of the random pages. 

Heavy didn't notice the little card she had slipped into his book. He was preoccupied trying to recall what name she had called him earlier. “Hmm, was it Mikhail? Or Misha?” 

“Both! Your name is Mikhail, but you let your friends call you Misha.” She shut the book and slid it over to him. “I guess that’ll have to do. The book is all yours.” 

“Was nice meeting you… again." He smiled a little as he took the book and tucked it under his arm as he turned to leave.

“Now hold on a second. You owe me coffee or something. Besides, I need to fill you in on a few things that might be missing in that bald head of yours.” She walked around from behind the counter. 

“Heav-, uh, Misha would like to know more!” He halted his departure and said excitedly before the clock on the wall caught his eye. It was already one thirty and he needed to be getting back to the manor before the doctor could have been arriving home. “Oh, but I have to be going now.” He said bluntly as he continued to head towards the door. 

Blair was quick and walked in front of him, blocking the doors. She crossed her arms. “Where are you off to in such a hurry? Don’t have any time to catch up with your book buddy?” 

Misha said a little urgently. “We can catch up other time.” he looked past her to the doors. “Have meeting with private doktor. He will be mad if I am late to appointment.” 

The book shop owner sighed and stepped aside. “Ok, I guess that's a little more important. But promise we’ll catch up some time? I was really worried about you, buddy.” 

He gave a small nod as he pulled his scarf up over his mouth. Heavy was still slightly stunned by the whole interaction he had with this book shop keeper, Blair. An apparent friend of his former self. He left the bookstore and hurriedly made his way back in the direction of the manor. 

Once back out in the cold, Heavy noticed just a block away was his dark haired doctor marching in the same direction as the estate. He quickly turned a corner to avoid being spotted. This only made Heavy walk faster in order to try and beat Eric home.


	24. In some trouble

Heavy, or Mikhail, had been trying to get back to the manor before being found out of his rebellious venture to town. However, the sounds of scampering paws and low growls from the forest got him on edge. He ducked into some of the snow covered plants to keep from being an obvious target walking down the cleared road. It was a slower hike as he made his way through the forest, keeping track of the road next to him as he went. He wanted to keep some cover in order to not attract the prowling wolves. This slowed him to the point that the doctor seemed to have caught up with him. Unfortunately, the wolves had taken notice of the seemingly vulnerable doctor also.

Then there Ludwig was, facing off with three wolves that had jumped out of the forest opposite from where Heavy was still hidden from sight. Eric had no chance against these cunning and vicious predators. Vastly outnumbered and out matched in both strength and lethality, Eric was certain he had met his end on the road back to the manor. 

Heavy couldn't just stand there and watch as the man who brought him back from death’s depths got shredded to bits by wolves. So, once he stuck his book in his coat and zipped it up to keep it secure, he made his roaring entrance into the pending fight. “RHAAAG!”. Branches broke and twigs scattered as he burst out of the forest and into the roadway. His first move was to tackle the pack leader, this might draw the attention of the other two wolves to fight him instead of drag Ludwig off. 

“Heavy!?!”. Ludwig was surprised when there was a sudden hulking russian monster wrestling with the wolf that had been seconds away from eating him. But, not taking the time to process this, Eric noticed a sizable branch that had fallen into the road from where Heavy had come from. Gathering his courage, the doctor picked up the stick and pointed it threateningly at the other two wolves that were closing in now that their leader was under attack. “G-get back!”. He swung the branch and struck one of the smaller wolves on the snout. It yelped and jumped back,but quickly shook its head and snarled at Eric. 

Misha felt the stinging bite as the big wolf sunk its teeth in his upper arm, breaking the layer of coat and puncturing flesh. He grunted in pain, but wasn't going to let a few scratches and bites prevent him from protecting Ludwig. He pulled the wolf off his left arm and got a solid hold around it’s head. The wolf struggled, kicking and pawing at the air. It snapped, snarling as it tried to get a hold of any part of the russian it could. Heavy kept his arm around the wolf’s neck as it squirmed for freedom.

As Heavy was fighting with the bigger wolf, Ludwig was still busy fending off the two smaller ones with his stick. He swung the stick to keep the encroaching wolf lackies from getting brave enough to join their leader in fighting Heavy. Eric had to be quick when smacking them or else they would try and catch the branch in their mouth and snatch away the one weapon he had.

With the tight squeezing around its neck, the large wolf was beginning to lose its fight. The squirming became weaker and it’s growls softer. Finally, the big furry beast went limp in Misha’s arms. Feeling the wolf go slack, the monster of a man lifted the wolf he had beaten over his head. “Doktor, move!”. 

Eric turned around and saw the amazing sight of Heavy lifting a large limp wolf over his head. The doctor tossed the stick at one of the small wolfs who caught it in its mouth and broke the branch into splinters with its powerful jaw. He then hurried out of the way, sort of ducking behind Heavy. 

Misha roared intimidatingly as he threw the wolf pack leader at the two other wolves. As the large wolf hit the ground, it jolted awake from its unconsciousness. It yelped and scrambled to its clawed feet in panic before dashing back into the woods, tail tucked. The other two wolves followed quickly behind, yipping as they ran off from their formidable foes. 

Heavy was panting and the adrenaline from the fight was quickly fading, letting the pain settle in over his body. The burning scratches and stinging bites flared with pain, causing Misha to put his hand over the torn sleeve of his coat and gripping it firmly. “Nngh...is doktor alright?”. He said panting and wincing in pain. 

Ludwig was still a little stunned, but soon came back to his senses. “I’m fine. I’m fine. Zhank you. But you’re hurt. Come on let's get you home” He began to walk, though he looked to Heavy with a slight confused and suspicious glare. “Vait, vhat are you doing all zhe vay out here anyvay?”

Heavy could feel the look Eric was giving him, but he avoided eye contact, looking straight ahead. “Uh… was chopping wood?”. He didn't sound very convincing, but he knew the doctor was smart enough to know better. 

“Mmhmm, I seem to recall seeing somevone vhis zhat same exact hat und coat who vas in _town_ as I vas valking home. Can you explain zhat, herr Heavy?” Ludwig sounded accusatory and a little annoyed.

With a defeated sigh, Heavy pulled the book from his torn coat and presented it to his doctor. “Da. Sold firewood for money. Went to town for book. Put on dese clothes as disguise.” 

Eric took the book from Heavy and looked at it before keeping it as he tucked it under his arm. “I hope you realize how shtupid zhat vas, going out in public. Vhat if somevone recognized you? Imagine zhe reports und rumors zhat could arise from your stroll zhrough town in zhat sorry excuse for a disguise. Sure, your sutures und bolts might be hidden, but a man of your size can hardly be completely unrecognizable just vis zhe use of a few extra layers of clothing.” Eric sounded bitter, and rightly so. His reputation and freedom was on the line. 

“Was careful, no one seemed to care. Besides. If Heavy did not go outside manor walls, you would be wolf food.” He said resolutely as they got closer to the front iron gates of the estate. 

Ludwig grumbled and looked at the gates ahead. “I have expressed my appreciation for you having saved me from zhe volves. But vhat vould have been zhe point of saving me from one bad ending if zhere is now zhe possibility of a vorse fate vonce somevone vises up und reports a valking dead man? Hmm? I feel like zhe mayor already has his eyes set on me. I don't need to draw more attention at zhe moment.” He opened the gates and then walked onto the estate grounds.

Misha followed the doctor inside the much cozier interior of the manor. His arm was still throbbing in pain. “Heavy is sorry. But can Doktor give my book back? Was not easy to get.”

“ _No_. You’ll get it after I patch you up und run you zhrough some tests as I had planned previously. I expect for you to be zhe best damn patient I have ever had in order for you to earn back your book zhat you snuck out to get. Also, you are to be staying in zhe lab for zhe night. You can reflect on how you zhought it vas a good idea to go behind mein back, und jeopardize everyzhing I have been vorking for!” There was a short and annoyed huff followed by a frustrated shout. “Schwartz, vhere are you?!”

There was the soft sound of feet approaching. “Here sir.” He looked at the scratched up monster and his rather angry young master. “Oh my. What on earth happened here?”

Ludwig marched up to Schwartz and shoved the Russian literature into the old man's hands. “You didn't keep an eye on him and he vent into town dressed like _zhat_ ” he waved a hand in the direction of Heavy. “zhinking he could pass off as normal. Now I vant you to take zhat book and place it in zhe security safe.”

Schwartz felt a twinge of guilt. “I’m sorry sir. I had sent him out back to chop firewood and must have forgotten to check in with him. For all I knew, he really liked chopping wood. But, yes sir, I’ll take this to the safe right away." with that he bowed slightly and went off to do the task he was ordered with. 

With a quick turn on his heels, Ludwig looked up at Heavy and narrowed his eyes slightly as he said with some hint of darker intent in his voice. “Now zhen. Let's get on vis your _examination_ , shall ve?”


	25. Shocking discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! You know how life can be. Getting in the way of writing and such. Also! I want to thank you all for leaving such lovely notes for me. It really means a lot, even if I can't reply to all of them sometimes. Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Ludwig turned the key to the secret lab and the wall shifted aside to reveal the hidden passageway. He went down the stairs with his monster following close behind. Eric was still rather cross with Heavy for having directly gone against his wishes of not going into town. He had originally planned for a standard physical, but now he was tempted to try a few less standard tests just to see what would happen. Nothing life threatening, but certainly not enjoyable.

Heavy was following behind his doctor with a twinge of guilt still eating away at him. He knew that he was in trouble for having snuck into town. Though his only saving grace from Eric’s full temper was likely his heroic display with fighting off the wolves that would have eaten Eric had he not been there. Unfortunately, Misha was still keeping the secret of his full encounter with the book shop owner who had recognized him and given him his name. Perhaps he would bring up the topic once his book was returned and his doctor was out of arm’s reach of sharp tools.

They got down to the lab and Eric took off his long winter coat and traded it for his lab coat. He pulled on his gloves with a crisp snap of the rubber. “You’ll need to get undressed. I don't have any gowns, so let's just be professional about zhis.” 

“Oh. Can I put on underwear?” Heavy pulled the pair of boxers he had bought when he was in town. 

“Ja. I vas unavear you had any.” Eric was over by one of the metal work tables, getting some of the tools cleaned and ready for the tests. He then went over to the desk and got his journal, flipping through the pages until he reached a blank page to make notes. He set this down on the work table next to the clean tools.

“Da. Got in town.” Heavy said in a slight mumble as he began getting undressed and then stepped into his new boxers. This was a little less awkward than being totally naked. Of course he had to remember that Eric had already seen him completely naked before. Heavy just couldn't shake the slight bashfulness he had now that he knew Ludwig better. 

The doctor gave a slight unhappy grunt at the mention of Heavy having gotten those boxers from town. “Sit up on zhe examination table for me.” He put a stethoscope around his neck and put some of the other smaller medical tools in his various pockets for easy access. 

Ludwig first had to patch up the bite wounds and scratch marks from the wolf encounter. He cleaned and bandaged up Heavy’s arm which had the worst bite, then put cleaning solution on any of the smaller injuries. With that part of his monster all fixed, the doctor could move on to the exam. 

The actual physical exam began with checking breathing, and other various basic bodily functions. Some of the readings were a little odd though. The electrical device that was meant to keep track of heart rate was a little scrambled when trying to collect and display the intended data of heart beats. This got Eric curious if these jumbled readings had anything to do with the electricity involved with Heavy’s resurrection.

“Hmm, zhis is very strange… very strange indeed”. Ludwig tapped on the black glass screen which the green heart rate line was glitching all over the place. He rubbed his chin and pondered for a moment before turning back to face his patient. “I need to test somezhing. Zhough I should varn you, it likely von’t be pleasant.”

Heavy’s brows furrowed with slight concern. “What is test?”

The doctor went over to the miracle machine and flipped a few of the switches and it lowly rumbled to working order. “I vant to run some electricity zhrough your body und see how it responds. I believe you have quite a bit of zhis electrical energy already coursing zhrough your body since it is vhat voke you from your eternal slumber.” He grabbed the two metal probes he had first used on the doves. Touching them together they sent bright sparks shooting out from between them. He grinned at Heavy in not very comforting way. “So, vhy not see vhat happens if I give you more?” 

The russian giant could easily refuse this and only risk being scolded and his book to have never been seen again. However, he was compelled not to disappoint his doctor who seemed rather eager about this medical exam, which was turning less than orthodox. “Dis looks like it vill hurt…” 

“Oh, don't be such a baby. It von't kill you a second time, _I don't zhink_ , und zhat’s vhat really matters!” Ludwig laughed softly, yet maniacally, as he went ahead and touched the two metal probes to the metal wires sewn around Heavy’s right wrist. 

There were sparks and zapping noises as the electricity jumped between the probes and metal wiring. Heavy winced as the noises sounded like they would be painful, yet he opened his eyes and only felt a slight tingle running through his arm. He chuckled slightly. “Dat tickles" 

Pulling the probes off, there was a gleam of fascination behind the doctors rounded spectacles. Eric inspected the area that had been shocked and said in awe. “Zhat level of voltage should have left burns, caused muscle spasms, und you said it just tickled?” There was no sign of damage to the skin that had been in contact with the electrified wire stitching. “ _Amazing_ ". 

Heavy looked at his wrist and noticed that it looked completely fine. “Is dis good thing, doktor?” 

“I don't know! Haha. It's so fascinating, isn't it?! I vonder just how high of a voltage you can take before somezhing of interest happens?” The doctor grinned as plans of further testing began to formulate in his thoughts. However, those ideas were brought to a sudden halt when that little voice in his head reminded him that Heavy was still human, even if he was a bit of a freak of nature at this point. 

Heavy’s look of concern only deepened as he could tell Ludwig might have been planning something especially unpleasant for him. But, whatever came next, he could take it, or at least he hoped he could. The monster sat up a little straighter on the exam table, preparing himself for the worst. 

The humming of the miracle machine then suddenly faded as Eric had switched it off and was placing the electrical probes back into their safety holsters. “Perhaps anozher day. I have gotten zhe basic information I need und a little surprise from zhe discovery of your incredible resistance to electricity.” He slipped off his rubber gloves and set them on the work table. He took a few seconds to scribble a few notes down in his journal before shutting it. “You may get dressed now, herr Heavy. In zhe meantime, I'll go fetch you your dear book. I suppose you’ve earned it back for having done such a good job vhile dealing vis all of mien _probing_. Ha ha ha?” Ludwig shook his head, instantly regretting having said that, and felt his cheeks heat up “Sorry, zhat vas a horrible joke.” He hurriedly took off his lab coat and laid it next to his gloves.

Heavy relaxed his posture when he realized the exam was over. As he got off the exam table and back onto his two feet, he couldn't help but chuckle at Eric’s little play on words. “No, no. Was funny. I get it.” He smiled and glanced down at Ludwig as he walked passed the doctor. The glance lingered a moment before he looked ahead again in order focus back on getting his clothes which he had discarded closer to the cells. 

Eric only felt his cheeks get hotter as Heavy seemed to actually enjoy the silly little joke he had made. The doctor noticed the slight lingering glance from his monster as he went to get the rest of his clothes. Sure, during the physical exam it was a little hard to ignore how impressively built his patient was. Also, _built_ wasn't just in the sense of being stitched up properly, but the russian’s overall figure was certainly alluring. Of course this was all just things Ludwig had to take note of for medical purposes, nothing more than that, or that's what he was going to keep telling himself to keep his emotions in check. 

Ludwig didn't realize how many silent moments had passed with him just standing there, sort of blankly staring with a goofy little grin across his face. But, he quickly got back into focus and adjusted his glasses as his expression returned to being more serious. “You had better stay down here for zhe night as I had said earlier. Don't make me regret bringing you back to life by being a pain in my ass und betraying my trust again.” He said with a huff and turned to leave. Ludwig said over his shoulder as he walked his way to the stairs. “I’ll see if I can get Schwartz to bring you somezhing better to sleep on zhen zhose questionable mattresses.” And with that, Eric marched up the stairs to get the book. 

Heavy got dressed into what he had been wearing before the exam. There was some burgundy splotches of blood on the coat that had been shredded by the wolf’s teeth. He decided it might be best just to be thrown away. The monster finished getting dressed in the basic pants, shirt and socks, then looked around at the lab from where he stood. “С какими проблемами я сталкиваюсь?” He said softly in his native tongue. 

Upstairs, the doctor had gotten to the hidden safe that was behind one of the paintings in the office. He opened it and took the book out, but as he was doing so, a little scrap of paper slipped out from between some of the pages. Ludwig watched as the little card fluttered to the floor before reaching down and picking it up. He tucked the book under his arm as he lifted the scrap of paper so he could see what was on it.There was an infinity symbol with “408 Birkenweg Street” written next to it and “-Misha" at the bottom. 

Ludwig’s eyes went a little wide as he recognized what this was. It was a calling card to a secret club that was rather forbidden in those times. The Infinity Club was a refuge for people who didn't quite fit the current mold of sexual preference simply being a man with a woman. This was a place that Ludwig had been to before, but not since his days back in university when he still had a hope for his love life. 

The question was, why was this card in Heavy's book and who was Misha?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> С какими проблемами я сталкиваюсь = What problems do I face?


	26. Name card

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Hope you like this chapter. Sorry for the wait, again. Thank you for your patience :D

The sun was beginning to set outside as Ludwig was on his way to return to the laboratory with Heavy’s book as promised. While he made his way through the manor, he reflected on the events of that week. It had been quite the busy week indeed. From stealing a corpse from the morgue, to bringing said corpse back to life, an unpleasant lunch with the mayor, then being attacked by wolves on the way home, along with all these growing questions regarding his reanimated monster of a man. It had all been oddly accelerating and nerve racking, but Ludwig wouldn't have wanted to change it one bit. 

The nagging topic in his train of thought was the amount of mystery surrounding his dear monster. It was rather exciting trying to piece things together about the big russian man. It was interesting to know of Heavy's passion for literature of all kinds. Not to mention the man had apparently studied the subject in a university somewhere prior to being here. But when Eric thought of a literature student, a big burly man like Heavy was not what he might of pictured. Though, Ludwig tried to make it a point not to judge a book by it's cover, which was a perfectly fitting saying when considering his monster.

As those thoughts trailed into the field of books, it brought his focus back to the poetry book he was currently holding along with the odd note he had found within it. He was unsure if he should bring up the note to Heavy in hopes of finding out the reason of it being in the book. Or his other plan was to go to the bookshop himself and ask some questions on if the book possibly had a previous owner named Misha.

He settled on bringing the note to Heavy's attention first, realizing it might be the better of the two options. After all, the doctor didn't want to expose whoever this Misha person was to some unknowing bookshop employee.The Infinity Club was a rather touchy subject and any lawman would certainly give a pretty reward to receive information about anyone who was in the club or the club's location which was constantly changing for the club members protection. 

Ludwig was lost in these thoughts until the voice of his butler caught his attention and he stopped just in front if his bedroom door.

“Master Eric, sorry to disrupt you, but might I apologize again for not paying closer attention to Mr.Heavy’s whereabouts today.” Schwartz stood upright with his hands folded poshly in front of him. 

Eric's previous annoyance due to his butler’s negligence of keeping an eye on Heavy had subsided for the most part. The doctor waved his hand dismissively and gave a small smile. “Vater under zhe proverbial bridge, Schwartz.” He raised a pointed finger to stop any possible response. “However, I vill be needing you to find a suitable solution for making one of zhe old mattress in zhe lab able to be slept on. Heavy vill be staying zhere for tonight. If you could consider zhat your first priority, zhen perhaps consider procuring a small meal for dinner. I’m not entirely hungry, but I’m sure Heavy might be after having such an eventful day.” There was a slight bitterness towards the end of that comment and he continued to say sourly. “Nozhing too filling zhough, he's still in trouble.” 

Schwartz knew this must have been the punishment for the monster's unapproved trip into town. He gave a little nod. “Right away, sir" . Then the butler promptly went off to fetch some bedding that might fit in one of those cramped cells.

As the doctor had been going to get his book from the safe, Heavy was wandering around the secret lab. Trying to distract himself from messing with his bandages, he scanned a few of the shelves that held the collections of personal Ludwig family medical journals. Heavy picked one out and was inclined to read it, until he flipped to the first page and determined it illegible. His german translation wasn't terrible, but the handwriting in the journal was atrocious. Certainly a common trait amongst most doctors. After tucking the journal back where it belonged, he made his way to the back book shelf that looked pathetically maintained. 

The first thing that caught his eye, other than the poor state of these journals, was a human skull resting on one of the upper shelves. It was helping prop up some of the journals and folders. Misha quizzically stared at the skull, trying to determine if it was a well made model or made of real bone. He looked at it until the sound of descending foot fall resounded from the stairwell which caused him to move back towards the middle grounds of the lab.

There was a slight frown to Ludwig's normally calm expression. He held the book at his side as he met Heavy in the middle of the laboratory. “I have brought you your book as promised.” He didn't make a move to offer the book back. “But I have to know one zhing before handing zhe book over to you.”

“What is it?”. Heavy rose an eyebrow in intrigue as to what it was the doctor possibly wanted to know about.

Ludwig lifted the little card that had the writings on it. “Was zhis in your book vhen you bought it? Or do you even know vhat it means?” He lifted the card to Heavy's face so the russian could see what was on it. 

The monster squinted at the card before remembering about the glasses Schwartz had let him have. He slipped them on quickly before inspecting the card that his doctor was showing him. There was an infinity symbol with an address and his newly found name written on the bottom. He felt his chest tighten up with nervousness because he supposed this was the moment he had to fess up about his true name that was given to him by the book shop owner. “Hmm, not sure about symbol or address… but uh, dat name is mine.” He pulled his glasses off and looked down to see how his doctor would react.

There was simply a torrent of questions that came from Eric who sounded both puzzled and a little frustrated “Your real name is _Misha_?! Did you remember zhis vhile in town? Why does zhis little paper have your name on it? Who put it in your book? Why-" 

Heavy rose his hand to stop the onslaught of questions “Doktor, _please_. Let me try and explain what I know. Is not much, but could be having a lead on my death.” The giant man turned and pulled up the office chair that had been tucked under the desk. He gestured for Ludwig to sit. 

The doctor crossed his arms, and remained standing in a rather defiant pose. “Explain zhe situation before my patience runs out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Little shout out to a friend, they go by wylmelvar on tumblr and they're super cool. Go check out their lovely art and such! 
> 
> Speaking of tumblr, if you wanna follow me or send me messages about the fic or anything else. My tumblr name is precious-evil.


	27. Doctor doubtful

The big russian gave a small nod and took a seat in the chair as a soft and tired sigh escaped his mouth. “My name is Mikhail, but people close to me call me Misha. I learned of dis when getting book you are holding.” There was a short pause as Misha thought how to word his thoughts. “Book shop owner recognized me and reminded me my name.” 

There was a look of concern that the doctor was expressing evidently across his features. However, he wasn't going to interrupt, seeing as Heavy was not finished explaining.

“Do not worry. She is friend. Was happy to be seeing me. Her name is Blair and she was with Misha before being found dead by police. She must have been one to put note in book before I was going back to manor. She is not bad person, Doktor. Was not scared of me. Is mystery what symbol and address are, but my name on leetle paper.” Misha ran one of his large hands over the top of his bald head and felt the stitching that encircled the top of his head. 

Ludwig took a deep breath and let it out slowly before beginning to pace back and forth in front of where Heavy was sitting. He used his hands to animate his words as he spoke. “Alright, zhis might not be as bad as I initially suspected. She could be part of zhe club and perhaps has invited you zhere to just talk. In vhich case ve should certainly accept zhe offer in pursuit of your lost memories. From vhat you say, und zhe card she stuck in your book, she could be of some help if zhis is all vhat it seems.”

Ludwig kept pacing, varying from quick steps to slow strides. “ _However_ , it might be best if I go alone und meet zis Blair voman. Just to be sure she vasn't trying to trick you into going into zhe public again. She could have known zhat you kicked zhe bucket, along vhis your amnesia, from reading zhe papers. She could be fully avare you should not be back on your feet und now she is trying to find out how you are living again. Or, or she could be planted by zhe police to lure men into a trap und accuse zhem of being involved in an illegally gazhered club for zhose who prefer same sex relationships. I vouldn't vant you getting caught up in somezhing you don't know anyzhing about, or risk being found in vhat state of being your are in now… vhat vis all your surgery sutures, und metal bolts protruding from your neck. It vould tip zhem off zhat somezhing unnatural happened to you.”

Misha listened to the doctor's wild trails of thought regarding the intent behind Blair’s message. He didn't stop Ludwig’s slightly paranoid ideas until his own appearance was mentioned in the rambling. “My _state of being_? Just another way of saying _monster_ …a freak” He frowned slightly and his gaze became downcast. His left hand rested on his right wrist trying to cover the wires.

The doctor stopped mid pacing and turned to Heavy, realizing he might have let his mouth run on a little too much. “Ach, I don't mean it in zhat vay.” He took a few steps forward and placed a hand on his creation’s broad shoulder. “Ozhers might view you as a monster, but you are so much more zhan zhat in my eyes. I have told you zhis, ja? Appearances are trifling. Ve all look zhe same in zhe end, mein freund.” The doctor smiled faintly, but was realizing how sentimental this must seem. He pulled his hand away, but still looked down fondly at the russian. 

Heavy lifted his head and looked up at Ludwig.“Misha wants to know who he was…who I am. Going with you in disguise could keep stitches and bolts hidden from people who _do_ care of Misha’s appearance.” His eyes were filled with determination. “Let me come with you, Doktor. I do not care if it could be dangerous.” 

The doctor sighed and rubbed the side of his face. “Ugh, you are not going to make zhis easy on me are you? Honestly, I shouldn't even be considering vhat you are proposing. Just based on your blatant disregard for my previous vishes for you to stay here at zhe manor.” He looked down at Heavy again. The giant russian looked worse for wear with all those bandages on his arms which were covering the injuries he had received from the wolf. Though Eric had verbally expressed his gratitude for being saved from the wolves, perhaps it was time to show a little appreciation, even if every fiber in his body was against the idea.

After thinking for a moment, Ludwig sighed in defeat. “ _Fine_. You can join me in going to zhe Infinity Club tonight, but you must be discreet und vear your silly disguise to cover your stitching.” 

Misha sat up with a big grin across his face. “Da! Vill be very discreet.” He then stood up and suddenly hugged Ludwig, ignoring the slight pain from putting pressure on the bite and scratch wounds on his arms. “Doktor is good man. Helping poor Misha, even if I did bad by going to town.” He chuckled a little before releasing Ludwig from the slightly crushing hug. “But is good now! Vill be knowing more about Misha’s past tonight when going to dis never ending club!” 

The doctor had not been expecting such an excitable hug from Heavy after agreeing to let him come along. When he was suddenly pulled into this hug, his round glasses were knocked askew on his face and the wind was squished out of him. Upon his release he took in a sharp breath and straightened his glasses. He could feel his cheeks heating up a little from having been embraced by the burly monster. “Uh, ja. It should be quite informative if your friend Blair is telling zhe truth about your history vis her.” 

“She seemed truthful. Misha has a good feeling. Dis vill be good.” He pushed the chair back to the desk before going over to where he had placed the remainder of his clothes for the disguise. He lifted the puffy coat which had been torn by wolves and there was some burgundy splotches of blood and puffs of escaping cotton coming out of the article of clothing. “Might be needing new coat for disguise.” Misha turned to show Ludwig the ripped coat. 

“Hmm, ja. Zhis coat is not going to see any more vinters.” He took it from the russian and bundled it up in his arms. “I can see if I can find you anozher one in zhe attic.” Ludwig turned to leave just as a big pile of bed clothes was making its way down the stairs with only two legs visible from the bottom.

There was a slightly strained voice coming from behind the bed clothes. “I have brought, urg, something to cover the mattress, oof, as you asked, sir.” Schwartz was struggling a little, but was managing best he could down into the lab.

Misha quickly walked over to help the old butler with the mountain if bed clothes. “Let me help. Can take it from here.” He wrapped his big arms around the cluster of bedding and felt as the butler let go.

“Ah, thank you Mr.Heavy.” Schwartz straightened up his uniform before turning his attention to Ludwig. “I will be getting right to making dinner now, unless there is something else you would like me to do first, sir?”

Eric grinned. “Actually, yes. Slight change of plans. I vould like for you to make dinner to go so you can drive Misha and I somevhere tonight.” The doctor gestured to Heavy in regards to the mention of the new name to his butler.

“I see. Mr.Heavy has recovered his name at last. That is good news. And regarding your request for me to drive you both someplace tonight, I sincerely hope it is to a location that is upstanding and safe for you, sir.” Schwartz rose an eyebrow slightly at Eric.

Before Ludwig could respond, Misha chimed in happily. “Actually. Mikhail is my name, but friends call me Misha. Is good name, da? But you can keep calling me Heavy if wanting to. Is fine.” He smiled proudly as he dropped the pile of bedding on top of the mattress he intended to sleep on that was in one of the cells.

“Understood, Mr.Mikhail.” Schwartz said before continuing. “I’ll go make you both something easy to eat while I am to drive you... where was it you wished to be taken again, sir?” 

“408 Birkenweg Street. Ve are meeting a friend of Misha’s zhere." Ludwig said with a hint of unease, but maintained a calm and collected demeanor.

“Of course, sir. I will get the car pulled out front whenever you need me to. In the meantime you can find me in the kitchen. If you’ll excuse me” Schwartz bowed slightly before he made his leave of the laboratory. 

Ludwig looked over to Heavy, who was busy making up the cell bed with whatever unholy amounts of bedding the butler had brought. It seemed there were at least two queen size comforters and three smaller blankets with two sets of sheets along with two plush pillows. He couldn't help but roll his eyes a little, but smiled. “I don't zhink you have enough blankets for tonight.” the sarcasm was dripping from his words. 

Misha looked over with a slight grin. “Nyet. Thinking mattress is needing much more blankets. Dis is true.” He chuckled softly as he finished laying out the blankets to cover the old dingy mattress. His tone turned more sincere. “Not sure if dis is punishment. Staying down here with such nice things to sleep on.” He looked at the now rather inviting bed as he thought this out loud. However, he quickly turned his attention back to his doctor. “But point of being down here is to think about what trouble Misha could have brought for Doktor by going into town. At least a friend recognized me. Not bad people.”

Ludwig's tone was slightly harsh as he gave the grinning giant a stern look. “You are just lucky on every account, mein freund. First off, vizout me, you should be dead. Second, ve both could still be neck deep in trouble if Blair is, oh I don't know, one of zhe people who vanted you dead in zhe first place! Unless of course your luck strikes again und she really does turn out be a friend razher zhan a foe.”

Heavy’s smile faded into a rather guilty expression. He didn’t press that topic further, but rather lifted the matching scarf, hat and mittens to show the doctor. “Needing coat for rest of disguise...” It was said as a statement, but was meant to be taken as a request.

“Ja. I’ll go do zhat.” Ludwig’s stern glare softened slightly. “Vish I had zhe amount of luck you do, mein freund. Perhaps vhis you around, a bit of your luck might come my vay, hm?” He shrugged and managed a small smile to end that conversation on more pleasant note. The doctor made his way up the stairs to go and find a new coat for his monster’s disguise.


	28. Welcome to the club

The pale glowing half moon had taken its position in the starry night sky. They had everything they needed for this trip. Ludwig found a black duffel coat for Misha. It was not as well fitting as his previous grey puffer coat, so the russian couldn't button up the front. Heavy was fidgeting a little with his scarf so he could eat without the garment getting in the way. Both men had a sandwich for on the road that Schwartz had provided. The butler was in the driver's seat, escorting them to the mysterious address that was scribbled on a piece of paper.

The lamps lining Rottenberg’s more traveled cobbled streets were soon absent when Schwartz took a turn onto Birkenweg street. This dark road was now lit solely by the two headlights beaming from the black fancy car that was strikingly out of place. 

“Schwartz, pull over. Stop here. _Now_.” Ludwig sounded a little urgent as he patted the back of his butler's seat.

Schwartz pulled over as his master requested, but he was a little weary that they had stopped in the rather sketchy side of Rottenberg. 

Misha looked to his doctor with a puzzled, yet excited expression. “We are here?” He leaned forward to see where it was they stopped, but it seemed they were not in front of any building, but a trashed vacant lot. His confusion only grew.

Eric slipped on his leather leather gloves and put on his warm earmuffs. “Zhe intended address ve are to meet at is a few houses down. I simply don't vant to draw attention to ourselves seeing as zhis vehicle is razher noticeable.” He popped his door open and put one foot out then looked to Heavy. “Get on your hat und mittens, ve can valk zhe rest of zhe vay.” He then gave Schwartz a rather pointed look. “Ve vill be _fine_. Zhe both of us are capable of fending off volfs, a few possible ruffians shouldn't be a problem if such an encounter occurs. You can simply pick us up here vhen zhe sun comes up.” With that he stepped the rest of his way out of the car and into the frost bitten night.

“The morning, sir? But what about-” Schwartz clearly had several concerns that were not going to be answered as Ludwig had already exited the vehicle. He took a deep calming breath, trying to keep his cool as the man he was sworn to take care of was getting out into the more danger prone side of town. The butler looked back over his shoulder as the monster was putting on the various articles of warm clothing to cover the stitching and bolts. “Mr.Mikhail. You will keep him safe, won’t you? He is the one who gave you your second chance at life. I hope you keep that in mind, sir.” He turned back to face the road. “Be safe. I will be meeting you both here in the morning.”

Misha gave a slight nod and he put the red and yellow toque on his head. “Da. He vill be safe with me.” He said reassuringly as he got out of the car to follow Ludwig. 

As the two bundled up men stepped to the side of the road, into the brown frozen grass, they watched as the car pulled away. The street was certainly dark, though some of the homes were providing some form of light to follow. 

Eric had his hands shoved deep into his coat pockets. His leather glove covered fingers were messing with the scrap of paper that had brought them to this place.

Heavy followed behind, keeping a watchful eye on any lingering shadow or potential threats that might have been shrouded in the darkness.

After a few minutes walking down the long and quiet street, they had finally reached their destination without any confrontation. They were at house 408, and the porch light was on.

Ludwig seemed to be shaking slightly from the cold, but his anxiousness was only fueling his jumpy nerves. He brought one of his closed fitst to the door, knocking firmly twice before stepping back.The large russian man stood almost protectively behind him as they both waited for the door to be answered.

There were a few noises that sounded like latches and locks being unfastened, until finally the door cracked open and the familiar face of the book store owner, Blair, was peeking through. Her brown eyes first were on Eric, then looked past him to see the big figure that could unmistakably be Misha. She opened the door wider and smiled brightly. “Oh, you finally made it big guy! Please, come in, you and your friend.” She smiled and waved them both in with a quick hand motion. “You’re letting all the warm air out, hurry.” The two of them walked into the modestly made home. 

This place was rather quaint compared to the mansion they were both now accustomed to. There were worn wooden floors and plain white painted walls with a few wall decorations here or there. It seemed to be a one story home, not stairs leading up to a second. Though it was odd when noticing that the coat and hat hanger had several people's garments hanging from it.

Blair shut the door behind them. “So is he why you were really hiding, Misha?” She grinned as she looked Eric up and down. 

This sent Eric’s nerves on edge. He thought she must have known about him bringing Mikhail back to life. Keeping the big russian held up in the manor. He knew this had been a bad idea. 

The worry that came across Ludwig’s face was evident. Misha pulled his scarf down enough to be able to speak clearly. “Da. He is my doctor. He helped me get better after accident. Was staying low at his home. He is trying to help me get memories back.” He smiled reassuringly down at Eric. 

Ludwig spoke up. “Uh, ja. I am Misha’s privately operating doctor. Doctor Eric Ludwig. Und don't vorry, I have been to zhis club before, just a few years back vhen I vent to university here. My lips are sealed.” He said to ease any suspicions as to why he was going to the infinity club with Misha. He then offered his gloved hand as a more proper greeting.

“Nice to meet you doc, I’m Blair.” She shook his hand before pulling away and then pointing between both men. “So you two didn't come as a couple? I shouldn't assume. But, I mean Misha does got some game.” She laughed playfully and winked at the taller man.

Heavy felt a heated blush come across his cheeks. He said a little quickly to change the subject. “We are here to ask what you know of my past. Is dere somewhere we can talk?” 

Ludwig had almost the same embarrassed expression but he tried to keep it from being noticed as he busied himself with taking off his long coat, gloves and earmuffs. He placed them with the other people's belongings by the hat and coat rack. 

She shrugged. “Yeah, of course I want to help you out. Come on down into the club and I can fill you in on whatever it is you want to know. But, you should take off all your layers first. It gets kinda hot down there with all the people and being close to the furnace”

Heavy shook his head and said resolutely. “Nyet. Will be fine. Can we go now? Misha would really like to know what is going on for once.” His tone was slightly impatient. 

Blair gave a small nod and turned, her long strawberry blond hair swishing with her movement. “This way boys. I don't want to keep my little mouse waiting for me.” She said in a slightly sing song voice. 

They all went further into the house as Blair lead the way. Ludwig already had an idea of where this club was being held. She had mentioned “down there" and “furnace” which meant there was likely a basement. Sure enough, they got to a door and she opened it to reveal wooden steps leading down and turning left. The heat rising from this basement was rather welcoming in the moment of just coming from the cold outdoors. There was rather upbeat music coming from below, accompanied with the sound of chatting and laughing to complete the club ambiance. Blair lead the way down the steps.

Misha was close behind Blair. He was excited to finally have the opportunity to be reminded of things he had forgotten. He was also comforted that Eric was with him to learn things about his past with him. 

Ludwig took up the rear, following Blair and Misha down into the Infinity club. He was a little more at ease, seeing as this hadn't been a trap. Though he was still on edge about taking Heavy into such a heated place and keeping in mind the necessity of his monster keeping all his garments on. 

The night was not over yet.


	29. Drinks all around

The overall noise of people conversing with one another suddenly went to a quiet murmur as the three of them made it down into the warm basement. It seemed they had caught most everyone's attention. There had to be at least thirty or so people gathered down there. The dark metal furnace was burning brightly in the back corner of the fairly large basement. The club had a makeshift wooden bar with some three legged stools pushed up to it, several foldable tables set out with various miss matched chairs pulled up to them. Many of these tables were occupied by men and women from the town who had come to the club in order to be there true selves. Some of the ladies were in more masculine attire and some men wore more feminine clothes and makeup, and no one batted an eye. Here, hidden away underground, was a slice of queer paradise in a town that had outlawed it.

A few of the voices could be heard as the three made their entrance into the club. This gossip was quickly moving through various groups and tables.

_“Oh, looks like Blairs back from answering the door.”_

_“Who’s she got with her?”_

_“Holy shit...is that.. is that Misha?”_

_“I thought he was dead.”_

_“Who’s that other guy with them?”_

_“Misha’s back?! I missed the big guy. Ooo, and it looks like he might have got himself a boyfriend now.”_

_“That new guy with the glasses looks kinda cute, hope he isn't taken.”_

_“Blair found Misha? Wonder if that other guy with them had anything to do with our russian bear missing out on coming to the club for so long.”_

The doctor and Heavy were both standing close to each other as they felt the attention from the club guests lingering on the both of them. As these soft whispers or generally spoken comments were spreading throughout the club, Blair was grinning widely as she sauntered over to the bar and planted a kiss on the person who was serving drinks. This woman was shorter than Blair and had medium length brown hair and hazel eyes. She was strikingly familiar to the good doctor who had previously purchased doves from the shop she worked in.

Tilly smiled sheepishly as Blair gave her a sweet kiss on her cheek. “Thank goodness it wasn't the police at the door.” Tilly said in relief before making eye contact with Eric, but before she could say a greeting, Blair interjected excitedly. 

“Hey babe, mind handing me a bottle and a spoon? I gotta make a quick announcement.” Blair said as she climbed up onto the bar and stood on the counter.

Tilly nodded and quickly handed the strawberry blond an empty bottle and one of the mixing spoons from behind the bar.

Misha felt more excitement than anything. He glanced over some of the faces in the room and felt they were in some way familiar to him. Their smiles or small waves made him eager to know what this place meant to him in his forgotten past.

Eric was nervous and disliked having so many eyes glancing or staring at him. He recognized only a few faces, but he only knew them in passing. Tilly was likely the only person there,besides Misha and Blair, that he had spoken with. The doctor was hopeful that no one recognized who he was.

There was a clanking of metal against glass as Blair gained the club's attention. “Excuse me! I got an important announcement so shut all of your beautiful yappers and listen!” A hush went over the basement as Blair climbed back down from the bar top, leaving the bottle and spoon where she had stood. She spoke clearly with a big smile and gestured towards the tall russian. “As some of you can see, one of our great Infinity club founders is back. Everyone give a big welcome back to Misha!” She paused to give the club a moment to cheer and whistle a little before she calmed them down with a wave of her hands. “Now now, don't get too excited.” Her smile faded and she glanced up at Misha before looking back to the crowd as she grabbed his big muscly arm, patting it a little in a show of sympathy.

“You all know how our previous location was compromised and our protective mama bear here was the one who prevented anyone from getting caught by the law by putting up a good fight. Well you might have also read in the newspapers how Misha supposedly died at the hospital after a nasty head injury.” She took a few steps and was in between Heavy and the doctor, now placing an arm around Ludwig’s arm.

“It seems our new friend here, Doctor Eric Ludwig, is the one who pulled some strings and got our dear Misha back on his feet in the secrecy of him being a private doctor. The sad thing is, our russian sweetheart has lost his memories from the bad head injury he got. So don't be offended if he doesn't remember you.” She then moved back to the bar and propped her elbow on it as she leaned against it. “So, that's all I’ve got. Go back to having a good time and thanks for lending me your ears for a moment. Drinks tonight are free in honor of Misha's heroic return!” She waved at the club who cheered before they all slowly went back to chatting as they had been before the announcement. The new hot topic revolving around was on Misha and Eric.

Blair turned her attention back to the two men. “Alright, time to get you two caught up!” She leaned up on the bar and smiled at Tilly. “Excuse me my little mouse, my lovely bartender. Can you get Misha his usual vodka, the usual for me.” She looked at Eric. “and what would you like doc?” 

Ludwig shook his head a little. “I’m fine. Zhank you for zhe offer.”

Tilly nodded at Blair then smiled to Eric as she got the drinks poured. “Good to see you again, Eric. How are your birds doing?”

The doctor said a little quietly. “Zhe doves are fine.” 

Tilly set the two drinks up on the bar and Blair picked them up. “I bet they all just love it in that big bird cage you got them. I’m sure they’d love to take a flight around one of the rooms in manor if you let them.” She suggested politely.

Blair butted into the conversation again before Eric had a chance to respond. “This way boys!” She gave a wink to Tilly before she lead the way to a back table closer to the furnace. “Sorry about the seating, but you should have gotten here sooner. It's first come, first sit around here.” She set the drinks down before taking a seat herself.

Ludwig quickly took the seat closest to the furnace, knowing it would be unwise to set Heavy in all his layers very close to the heat. The build up of sweat could cause the russian’s sutures to loosen and possibly deteriorate faster than the estimated healing time it would take. Even that all depended on if the monster’s body parts could in fact heal back together again. 

Misha took the seat closer to Blair. He was at the edge of his seat both literally and metaphorically. “Blair, please tell me what you are knowing of me. You mentioned Misha is a founder of dis club? Is dat why I am in Rottenberg? Did police really give me dis head injury? Tried to kill me? Does Heavy have family in town?” He let his nickname slip out in his rush if questions. 

“Whoa, whoa, relax teddy bear. Seems like you still like to get to the point, but the night is still young.” She smiled and took a sip of her drink. “and you’re not _heavy_. Though you could probably benefit from losing a few layers. You must be hot” She lightly tugged at his coat sleeve.

Eric spoke up a little defensively. “I call him Heavy. But, it vas just a little nickname seeing as neizher of us knew his true name until recently. I found Heavy more fitting zhan zhe classic title of John Doe.”

“Da. Heavy is what Doktor calls me. Will try to keep it to Misha during conversation.” He reached for his glass, and grabbed it awkwardly with his mitten covered hand. He took a small drink and hummed happily, the taste sparking a few fuzzy recollections, but not a firm memory.

“Gotcha. So we’ll tackle one question at a time.” Blair leaned back a little in her chair. “So first thing's first. You’re name is Mikhail, you know that already. Much like your deceased father, you wanted to make a change in your home country. You are from Russia, no surprise there, but you were run out of the country after being discovered that you were rallying other members of the gay community together to fight for your rights.” She swirled her drink around in the glass. “You always told me stories about your mother and three younger sisters. Don't worry, apparently they are safe from word given by a connection you still have in Russia. Sadly, you can't visit them any time soon unless they make their way out of Russia too.” She paused to let Misha take in what information she had given.

Misha took a slightly longer sip of the vodka as he listened to Blair. “Misha has family and they are safe. Dis is good.” His expression remained rather serious. “Now what happened to Misha after coming to Rottenberg and before going _missing_?” He glanced over at Ludwig then back to looking at Blair.

She had taken a drink in the meantime as Misha asked his next question. She gave a small nod. “Yeah, so you’ve been in Rottenberg for almost two months now. You came to my shop looking for work and after we got to talking, the subject about our town laws got brought up. We saw eye to eye on the subject of homosexuality not being a crime. Then I brought up this thing called the Infinity club had been around for years, but it was mostly restricted to secret meetings for those who attended university. I’m sure your doctor is familiar with that club branch.” She gave a sly grin to Eric. 

Ludwig fidgeted with his hands. “Ja. Vhen I vasn't buried in mien schoolvork I might have attended some of zhere meetings.” 

Misha nodded as he listened, though he was growing uncomfortably hot and was sweating buckets underneath all his clothes. Perhaps he would ask to use the upstairs bathroom and get some relief from the heat once his curiosity was satiated.

“Exactly, the club was a secret kept by university students. We quickly found out that some of the members that had graduated missed having that sense of community. Just those few hours of feeling free, feeling like yourself, people wanted it back, but the problem was they weren't in school anymore. That's when you and I came up with a plan to give the Infinity club a new chapter. We reached out to people privately and they were more than willing to meet up in an undisclosed location. We built up quite the grouping and soon we were the proud founders of the Infinity club, town edition!” She threw her hands up in the air, making a grand gesture of their accomplishment. 

Heavy chuckled a little at Blair’s excitement as he was listening to the story. “So, dis place knows me for helping start up club. Misha feels like dis is making more sense. Feels familiar.” He smiled and looked over to Eric. 

The doctor smiled and patted his shoulder. “I had a good feeling about you, Misha. You have a good heart.”

Blair smiled at the two of them. A bit of a knowing grin, but she wasn't about to point out the obvious chemistry those two were having. “Yeah, he's a real saint. Which brings me to the most recent part of your story and final question.how you got your head injury.”

Misha looked more focused at this point of the story. He went to lift his glass again, only this time as he went to bring his drink to his lips, he was met with a surprising lack of a hand. He heard a sharp gasp from Blair. It seemed the stitching around his wrist had dissolved a bit from the sweat and came loose when trying to lift the cup. His mitten covered hand was still wrapped around his glass of vodka, but his arm was clearly pulled away from it. “Uh, oh…” 

Eric’s nerves had finally settled down with the distraction of hearing Misha’s story from Blair. That all quickly went away when he watched as Heavy's hand detached from the rest of his arm. He felt his blood run cold as he quickly looked to Blair.

Blair’s eyes went wide as she saw her friend's hand come off with freakish ease and no sign of it causing pain. It was still clasped firmly around the drink. She looked to the dismembered hand and then to Misha and Ludwig. Her voice wavering as she stood up, chair scraping against the concrete floor. “Wh-what the fuck. What.The.FUCK!?!”


	30. Party Fowl

With Blair’s outburst of shock, now others were looking that direction to see what had happened. Misha quickly grabbed his dismembered hand and it let go of the glass of vodka. The drink clattered and spilling over the table.

Eric stood up and held his hands up slightly, trying to calm Blair down. “N-now, zhis is completely normal given zhat his surgery vas quite _extensive_.” Ludwig nervously laughed as he tried to sugar coat this. There was nothing ordinary about how Misha's hand had fallen off due to weak stitching. 

Misha was frantically pressing his lost body part back onto the stump of his wrist. Just as he thought it was stuck back on again, he let go and it fell back onto the table with a thud. Even more unsettling, his detached hand that was inside the mitten was _moving_ , meaning that it was still alive.

“Th-that is _not_ normal!!” She pointed shakily towards the wiggling mitten on the table. Blair looked frightened. “What did you do to him Eric?!” Her frightened voice was laced with simmering anger. A few people got up and went to see what the whole commotion was about. Those who stayed seated spread worried whispers through the club.

Eric looked to the wiggling mitten and said quietly. “hmm, zhat's interesting...I'll have to study zhat furzher.” He paused his muttering and looked around at the gathering people and his anxiousness grew. He swiped up the hand from the table and pulled Misha over, shoving the hand into the giant's coat pocket. He said urgently. “Ve need to go. _Now_.” 

Misha felt his hand get grabbed and stuck into his pocket. The growing crowd was a little unsettling, given his state of being reanimated was intended to be kept secret. Hearing the urgency in Eric's voice, Misha moved forward, keeping his nubbed wrist tucked into the same pocket his dismembered hand was stuck in to keep what had happened hidden. His height had him towering above many of the club members and he started to push his way past the small crowd. 

Heavy had convinced Ludwig that letting him join in on visiting to the infinity club would be of no risk to them. It certainly beat having to stay at home, stuck in a cage for his previous bad choice of sneaking out into town. Now here they were. On the brink of being seen as the stitched together monster, and the mad doctor that had made him. 

Blair noticed Misha was leaving and caught sight of Eric who was about to follow behind. She quickly grabbed the sleeve of his nice shirt and yanked the doctor backwards. “Hold on a minute! I'm not done talking with you! What's going on!? What the fuck happened to Misha?!”.

Eric was sent into panic when he felt himself being tugged backwards, away from Heavy. He turned to face Blair and shoved her backwards. This was not intending to harm her, but he certainly wanting her to back off. “Let go of me!” He shouted, before realizing what he had caused. 

Blair stumbled backwards and tried catching herself from falling. Unfortunately, in her state of imbalance, she subsequently grabbed hold of the side of the closest stationary thing. The furnace. This caused her to shout out in pain as her hands got burned on the hot metal surface.

Misha quickly turned to see what had happened, but then was hurriedly being shoved in the other direction by Eric. “What was dat? Thought Heavy heard Blair yell?”. 

It seemed like the group had began to grow larger as more people got up to come over and see what the commotion was about. 

_“What’s going on? I'm scared.”_

_“Something’s up with Blair, Misha and that doctor guy.”_

_”I think I heard someone say Misha has something wrong with his hand?”_

_“Shit, did you see that Eric guy totally pushed Blair up against the furnace?”_

_“That newcomer attacked Blair. I saw it.”_

_“He's causing trouble. He should be kicked out.”_

_“No no, Blair grabbed at him first. Probably because of whatever happened with Misha.”_

_“Someone get Tilly quick, Blair's hurt!”_

With the rising calamity, a majority of the club had gone to aid their injured founder. The two men slipped out towards the stairs, unnoticed by the group, just as Tilly was coming in the direction of the crowd. 

Tilly looked worried and confused as she brushed past the two who were at fault for this disturbance in the club. She was clutching the first-aid kit in her hands as she made her way through the crowd. “Oh my god. What happened, Blair?”.

With the exit from the basement in sight, Misha lead the way up the stairs with Eric right at his heels. The doctor was pushing lightly at Heavy's back to spur on a more hasty exit by his creation. “Can't you go faster?!”. Eric said with panic lacing his tone. “Hurry before zhey get angry und come after us instead of vorrying about Blair's injuries.” 

Heavy marched up the stairs and opened the basement door, coming out into the much cooler main floor of the house. Hearing what Eric said, he took a moment of pause. “She is hurt? We cannot leave like dis.” He stated firmly as he was about to head back down into the club. 

Ludwig stood defiantly in the way of the door. “She vill be fine. It's _us_ zhat you should be more vorried about right now.” He stepped past Heavy, but took hold of the giant man's striped scarf and tugged in the direction of the front door. “Your hand fell off in zhe viewing of several people! Ve have to go home right avay.” The doctor tugged a little more, trying to get Heavy to move. 

Misha looked back at the basement door then down to his doctor who was adamantly pulling at his scarf for them to leave. With a sigh, he walked towards the entrance of the house with Eric.

The doctor didn't even take time to put on his coat, gloves and earmuffs before they exited into the cold. Holding the bundle of winter protective clothes under one arm, Ludwig lead the way out with his hand still firmly holding Heavy's scarf. 

The monster did his best to keep up with his maker's quick pace. He was getting tugged along like a dog on a leash and he didn't exactly care for the feeling. “Doktor, we have left. You can be letting go of Heavy's scarf now.”

The night was still upon them and the sun was far from rising. Schwartz wouldn't be back with the car to pick them up until then, so they had to figure out what to do in the meantime. There was also the option that they could risk the dangerous walk back to the manor. It wouldn't be wise though, with the wolves at peak activity and with the advantage of being able to see in such darkness. Both men knew better then to take that route again.

Once having briskly walked far enough away from the club, Eric let go of Misha's scarf and came to a stop under one of the dim glowing street lights. He took a moment to put on his winter clothing and said in an irritated tone. “I hope you are satisfied vis how tonight vent, Misha. Now ve are stuck out here in zhe cold until Schwartz comes back in several hours to pick us up.” He flashed a pointed glare up at Heavy before looking back down to make sure he was putting his gloves on the right way. 

Heavy pulled off his scarf to keep Ludwig from having the chance of pulling him around again. He rose his eyebrows at Eric's blatant accusation for the night being ruined because of him. “You are thinking dis is Misha’s fault? Is not my fault _Doktor's_ stitches were not strong enough to keep hand on!” He lifted his stubbed wrist and his tone raised a little with a growl. “And it was _you_ who hurt Blair. Could have just found simple excuse to leave instead of being scared leetle baby.” He jabbed his nubby wrist at Eric’s chest. “Is your fault we are out in cold instead of finding out exactly how Heavy died. You promised me dat you would find dis out. Now only peeple we have to be knowing dis do not like us because of YOU!” As he yelled a few sparks flew from his neck bolts. The nearby electrical street lamp seemed to get struck by some of the sparks and the dim light got suddenly brighter before the bulb shattered from the sudden rise of voltage.

They were now glaring at each other in the sudden darkness. Only the pale moonlight to illuminate the general shapes of things around them. 

This sudden spark and explosion of light did momentarily distract Ludwig from his argument with his creation. However, it was just another thing to file away and test when they got back to the lab. Currently they were stuck out in the cold and now in the dark, the next street light being blocks away. “I shouldn't have even brought you along! If I had just left you at zhe manor as I had decided before you...gah! I should have known better zhen to let an _experiment_ like yourself influence me into possibly jeopardizing my life!” He threw his hands up in frustration and turned his back to Heavy, crossing his arms across his chest as a shiver ran through his body from the settling cold. 

Heavy figured it was just more bad luck for the bulb to have gone out at that moment, not realizing it had been his doing. When Ludwig had turned around, Misha turned to his side, crossing his arms and giving thr doctor a cold shoulder. He grumbled sourly and loud enough for his maker to hear him. “Dis _experiment_ did not ask to be made dis way…or to be brought back to life at all. Is _your fault_ ”.


	31. Making amends

The night air was dry and frigid and a tense silence had fallen between the two men. The wind picked up, sending a shiver through Eric’s entire body. Neither wanted to move from their stubborn stances on the disagreement dealing with the subject of how horribly wrong the night had gone. It was like this for several chilling minutes before Ludwig finally broke the silence. 

“V-ve sh-should m-move to a new l-lamp. S-so, Shwartz can s-see us v-vhen he gets h-here.” Ludwig’s teeth were chattering as he slowly began walking towards the next street light just down the road. His movements were stiff due to how much colder the winter time felt when the night sky provided little warmth compared to the sunny day. 

Heavy turned back around just as his maker began walking off towards the next closest light post. He observed how Eric was shivering and walking with stiff, frigid movements. The cold didn't seem to affect Heavy like that. Despite his lingering frustrations towards the stubborn German man, he slipped off his big coat and caught up to walk next to Eric. Without a word, he draped the warm garment around his maker's shivering figure. 

The coat enveloped Ludwig in a comforting warmth and the doctor's scowl changed momentarily to a more peaceful and pleasant expression. He then looked up in confusion at Misha as he grabbed either side of the big coat and pulled it tightly around him. “Vhy did you take off your coat? You might get cold, and your missing hand can be seen.” 

The giant man shrugged as they continued to walk down the side of the street. “You were sounding cold and is too dark to be noticing missing hand.” There was a momentary pause before Heavy said more sourly. “And doktor needs to be warm more den simple minded _experiment_.” While Heavy's actions had kind intentions, his words certainly were meant to strike a cord in Eric's heart.

Ludwig opened his mouth to dispute Heavy calling himself that. He didn't like his beautifully, and painstakingly crafted creation speaking in such low regard of himself. But Eric clenched his jaw just as the words were about to leave his mouth. A deep seated stubbornness did not want to indulge the conversation further. Especially if it meant retracting his previous statement he had made in his moment of frustration. 

They walked further in more rigid silence. The low glowing light of the upcoming street lamp was stretching out, beckoning them to enter under its welcoming light. The night stretched on and the two men remained bitterly silent.

The dawn had come and both Eric and Misha looked exhausted. Unfortunately, they still had not spoken to one another since their little spat from coming out of the club. Finally, a familiar pair of headlights came down the street just as the sun peeked up over the horizon. 

The car made its stop in front of them. Schwartz stepped diligently out of the driver's seat to come around the side and open the passenger door for his master. The old man observed how Eric was covered in an extra layer of warmth that had originally been the monster's coat. He then looked to Mr.Mikhail who was going around the back of the car to the other side. In a glimpse from the hazy glow of the tail light, he realized how the giant man's hand was missing. He kept his questions and concerns to himself at the moment as he shut the car door once Ludwig had made it into the vehicle.

Misha had an awkward challenge with the car door. He went to reach for the door handle, only to be reminded that his dominant hand was missing. The appendage was still stuck in the coat pocket that was now around Eric. He reached with his other hand before being able to make his way into the car. The whole vehicle shifted along with Heavy's weight as he took his seat.

Schwartz made it back into the driver's seat and began to drive them back to the estate. He glanced into the rearview mirror and noticed the evident agitation that both men had in their body language, glaring out of their respective windows. “Is everything alright, master Ludwig? You seem to be upset.” 

Eric’s scowling frown momentarily disappeared and he sounded rather defensive. “Upset? Vhy vould you zhink zhat I am upset? I’m simply tired and have vaiting out in zhe cold for a vhile. You can't expect me to look cheerful vhen most of mein body iz frozen stiff.” He scoffed and went back to scowling at the window.

Schwartz shook his head a little and turned his questioning toward the monster. “And you, Mr.Mikhail? How did the evening treat you?”. The butler turned the car down another street, the lamps and houses passing by as they road towards their destination.

Heavy grumbled as he waved his nubbed wrist in the air a little while he spoke. “Hand fell off. Caused panic at club. Doktor decided we should run away like cowards from problem instead of facing it like real men.” He said rather pointedly as he gave a side glancing glare towards Ludwig. 

Eric huffed and bit back. “Vell, maybe if _you_ hadn't of suggested to come vis me in zhe first place, none of zhis vould have happened, hmm?” He kept his icy glare directed out the window. 

The butler now understood the initial feeling of frustration radiating from the two in the back. “Ah, well we are almost home gentlemen. I'm sure you two will get this sorted out one way or another.” Schwartz tried to keep his tone upbeat to try and lighten the mood. 

Eric rolled his eyes while Misha shook his head a little. Both in disagreement towards the butlers wishful thinking. Neither of them were willing to step down from their position in the argument, not just yet anyway. 

The car pulled into the garage and out of the fidged night air. The three of them got out of the car before entering the warmer interior of the mansion. Schwartz had diligently thought to keep some of the fires going while the two of them had been gone at the club. The butler bowed and gave his excuse to do his morning routine duties. Leaving Eric and Misha to be standing in the main entryway. 

Ludwig was the first to finally speak up as he pulled off the coat Heavy had passive aggressively let him wear in the cold. The missing hand still resting inside one if the coat pockets. The doctor draped the big coat over one of his shoulders. “Vell, I can't have you valking around zhe manor vis only one useful hand. Come on. I'll get mein zhings to sew it back on.” He sounded slightly irritated, and then yawned, partially covering his mouth as he did. 

Heavy gave a small nod, but was standing tall with resentment. His jaw was firmly set and his arms crossed over his chest. He would appreciate getting his hand put back on, but he felt annoyed that he had to rely on _this_ doctor to do so. 

They both made their way down to the secret lab. Though they did momentarily stop in the bedroom so that Ludwig could bring Archimedes along with them. Having the little dove there eased the tension slightly. It was difficult to maintain the majority of their lingering anger with the cute little bird cooing and looking around with such innocent curiosity. 

Taking their seats across from one another, Eric fished out the severed hand from the big coat’s pocket and tossed the coat haphazardly onto the desk. He handed Misha his missing hand to hold onto while he marched over to his work table and grabbed the spool of wire and stitching needles. Sitting back down, Ludwig pulled Heavy’s arm over to rest on his thigh. The doctor put out his hand, palm facing up, expecting Misha to hand the body part back so he could begin re-attaching it.

Heavy gave the doctor his hand and grumbled under his breath. “Надеюсь, что на этот раз вы сможете присоединить его правильно". He kept his gaze strictly away from Eric. 

Ludwig looked the hand over to see the best way to re-attach the limb. It was still strange how the fingers twitched a little. He rolled his eyes at his creation's seemingly snide comment. “At least I offered to put it back on in zhe first place. I could just sew zhis to your bicep if you keep up vis zhat attitude.” It was an empty threat, but it got his point across as Heavy seemed to go quiet. 

The doctor was careful as he first pulled the needle through the skin of the disembodied hand. He glanced at his creation to see if that had hurt. No sign of discomfort. Still, his creations gaze was hardened and fixated onto the floor. Eric gave no warnings as he was going to plunge the needle into the stubbed wrist side that was still a part of Heavy's whole.. But as the doctor stuck the needle through, the pricking sensation didn't seem to bother Misha one bit.

Heavy felt a slight pressure as his hand was being sewn back on, but nothing more painful than a slight pinch. He didn't complain, and remained grumpily silent. 

They were about halfway done with Misha's hand re-attachment when Eric spoke up. His tone was soft and slightly resistant at first. “I have been zhinking about last night...” there was a slight pause for thought and then he said more bodly. “I vas out of line for saying you are simply anozher experiment to me.” He pulled the stitching wire through the skin, the hand being pulled back onto the arm a small bit more. “I believe I have told you vhat an accomplishment you are to me and mien vork, but now zhat I have gotten to know you better…you should know zhat you are much more zhen an experiment.” He glanced over to Heavy who was still avoiding eye contact, but Ludwig did notice his creation looked less aggravated. “I just vanted to make zhat clear. I said somezhing regrettable in mein moments of anger und stress. I hope ve can move past zhis and perhaps make ammends, as Schwartz suggested.” Ludwig's voice had gotten much quieter nearing the end of his apology. His eyes locking back onto the task of stitching. Skilled hands nervously weaving the needle, followed by wire, in and out of the paled skin. 

There was short stretch of silence before Heavy spoke. His hum of considering the doctor's apology came out as a low rumble.“Hmm.” He felt his cheeks heat up a little and he momentarily glanced to Eric and then away again before speaking. “Heavy iz thinking we both were in wrong during last night. Will accept Doktor’s apology, if Doktor can be accepting of mine.” 

Ludwig smiled slightly and gave a nod. “Ja, zhat sounds gutt. Zhough to be fair, it vas mostly my fault looking back on it now. Of course you vould have vanted to go to zhe club to get answers. You had every right to go. It is hard to make your situation of being reanimated for zhe dead not feel like you are my prisoner here.” He finished up the last stitches around Heavy's wrist, then began checking the integrity of them. Making sure they would hold. 

“Vhat I am meaning to say is, I certainly don’t vant you to feel trapped here. I understand zhat it can be difficult having to hide who and vhat you are. Zhough it's hard to compare my undestadning of it seeing as my case is zhe judgement of being gay in a vorld zhat is hateful towards zhe idea, und yours. Your case is purely cosmetic und it is harder to hide in plain sight like me. Vhat vis your stitches und bolts, und electrical outbursts. Not to mention your hand still moving vhile unattached to your body. Your case is very strange, yet oh so fascinating.” Eric’s ramblings were paused before he scrunched his eyebrows as he thought about what he had just said, then quickly corrected himself. “Ach, vhat am I saying?! You're a rediscovered leader of zhe gayest club in Rottenberg. Vell, zhe _only_ gay club in Rottenberg. Gott, you have it so much vorse off zhen me! Und here I am, probably not been zhe most helpful by panicking over you being seen in public and making you feel vorse about your life after death. You must be so-”

Heavy raised his newly stitched on hand in a motion to encourage the doctor to stop his anxious ramblings. He had to interject when Eric kept going. “ _Doktor_.” He waited as his doctor blinked and focused back in, looked over with attention. “Is _fine_.” He rolled his wrist a little, testing the integrity of the attachment. “Heavy can understand why you are being so careful of my presence in front of others. If old Heavy was looking and saw new Heavy in current state... would also be quick to be assuming bad things. Is sad thing, but is truth. Maybe it was not wise for Heavy to have gone with you to club. Maybe. But I am thanking you for giving me dat chance.” The Russian man smiled kindly. “And like you are saying...we are both in similar boats. People are not understanding of us, either from what we are on outside, or what we are on inside, or both. But is always important to be knowing dat we are not alone in dis battle. We are looking out for each other. Dat is best thing.” Misha reached over and put his hand on the doctor's shoulder, a light blush gracing his cheeks. 

Ludwig felt his face heating up also. Despite the rough night of bickering and blaming one another, they had come together again with a stronger understanding of each other. Eric could feel his heart thudding in his chest as he felt something he hadn't in a long time. He genuinely cared for Misha and would likely go to the ends of the world to keep his creation safe. The realization of this was exciting, and scary, but he didn't want it to stop. 

“So, we are being friends again?”. Heavy patted Ludwig’s shoulder, granted a tad too rough. The creation smiled happily as they had managed to bridge the gap that the troubling night had formed between them. 

Eric reached across his chest to place his hand on top of Misha's. “Ja.” He pulled Heavy's hand off his shoulder and brought his other hand so he was clasping Misha's with both of his. “Zhough… actually… I vas vondering if… I vas zhinking zhat it could possibly be mor-” 

Just as the doctor was trying to profess his feelings for his creation, the phone located near the entrance of the lab rang. It was a rather loud and jarring interruption, as the bell on the phone rang. The ringing bounced off the stone walls and reverberated unpleasantly.

Eric jumped to his feet and hurried over to the phone. The burning excitement in his chest from what he was attempting to tell Misha was quickly doused with a bucket of cold water. It was Shwartz and he sounded a touch more nervous than usual. 

“I know you must be exhausted sir, but it seems there is an urgent matter to be dealt with at the entryway that is in need of your immediate attention.” The old man's voice wavered ever so slightly at the mention of an _urgent matter_. 

Ludwig felt his excitement fading and a cold sense of dread wash over. “Vhat seems to be zhe issue? Can't you tell me over zhe phone?”.

Shwartz said in a hushed tone. “It's the police.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Надеюсь, что на этот раз вы сможете присоединить его правильно. = I hope that this time you will be able to connect it correctly.


	32. Interrogation

The unexpected news that the police were waiting at the mansion doors was alarming. Eric quickly hung up the phone and nervously looked around the lab for a moment before getting a hold of himself. “Oh gott…”

Heavy furrowed his eyebrows in confusion at how anxious his doctor suddenly looked. “What is it? What is wrong?”

Ludwig collected Archimedes from where he was perched, and then looked to Misha with a serious glare. “You are to stay down here. Do not leave zhis lab, understood? I vill not let zhem find you.” He headed towards the stairs. 

Heavy stood up, looking even more confused and worried. “Who is here? What was phone call about?”. He had stood up and quickly closed the space between himself and Ludwig. “ _Doktor!_ ”. The creation took hold of his maker’s hand and held it firmly. “Will not let you go alone.” Misha said stubbornly. 

Eric was stopped by the sudden grab of his hand and he looked over his shoulder. “Zhe police are here. I have a feeling some of your _friends_ from zhe club could have tipped zhem off anonymously.” He grumbled as he rolled his eyes. ”Vouldn't be a big surprise considering zhe complete disaster zhat visit vas.” Then Ludwig yanked his hand out of the reanimated man's hold. “Now stay here vhile I take care of zhis.” He marched up the stairs and the secret door at the top closed at the turn of the key.

Heavy was left standing at the bottom of the steps, looking up at a stairway leading to the sudden dead end. The sense of dread and confusion took over him. His heart felt constricted in his chest as he remained there, diligently waiting for Ludwig's return.

Eric felt his heart racing with panic. The exhaustion from staying awake all night was overtaken by this growing fear. Once the dove was put back in his cage, Ludwig pulled off his coat. He didn't even realize he had still been wearing the coat from last night's trip. He tossed it onto his bed, and hobbled along for a moment as he bent down to slip the lab key into his ankle high sock for safe keeping. The doctor pushed past his bedroom door and tried to regain some calmness as he walked towards the front doors to the mansion. He kept his hands folded behind his back, chin tilted up slight and his steps were confident and clicked quietly against the polished floors. 

Schwartz was at the door, which was partially opened for the two police officers who stood outside. They looked rather annoyed with the old butler. 

The men outside were in their uniforms. One was tall and slender. He had short brown hair along with a full beard, and hazel eyes. His name was Karl. The man to the right of him was shorter and boxier in build. This was Otto. His eyes were brown and his hair was grey and cut short and he had a clean shaven face.

Schwartz said adamantly to police chief Otto.   
“I assure you, my master has done nothing to warrant such an unexpected visit from the authorities.” 

“That's all well and good sir, but we're still going to need to speak with him about the situation.” Otto's gruff voice was stern and his position on the porch unmoving. 

Eric cleared his throat as he got closer to the front door. Schwartz turned around and looked worried, but backed away to make room for his young master to talk with the police.

“Vhat seems to ve zhe problem officers? Catch somevone sneaking onto my private property again? Zhose trouble making children coming to zhrow eggs again? Vhat a vaist of eggs, if I'm to be honest.” Eric said in a friendly manner, trying to not raise any suspicion of inner guilty conscience.

Officer Karl spoke up, his voice soft and cheerful. “Good morning Dr. Ludwig. I'm officer Karl Muller and this is the chief of police, Otto Roth. We were just-” 

Otto interjected. “I'm afraid you're going to have to come with us to answer a few questions. Now if you’ll join us outside and we'll escort you to the police station.”

Eric visibly prickled at the very idea of going with these men. “Vhat am I answering questions for? I have done nozhing varrenting such a zhing as zhis.” He crossed his arms and glared at the policemen. 

Karl looked a little bit disappointed. “Dr.Ludwig, we're just trying to do our jobs to get the story straight. You're only needed at the station to answer some questions because of some information we recently received.” 

Eric internally grumbled at this. “ _You push one person against a basement furnace und everyone freaks out. Maybe I should let Misha scold zhose who told zhe police on me for such a trifling zhing. Hmm, actually probably not a good idea to go back to zhe club ever again._ ”. 

Otto rached to his hip, resting his hand on his handcuffs. “Are you coming willingly or do we need to help you out…” The threat being clearly expressed.

“Schwartz, could you grab mien coat? I seem to have left it in my room.” Eric flashed a fake smile to the officers. “Give my butler a moment to get my coat. Zhen I vill be more zhen happy to leave zhe warmth of my home to answer pointless questions down at zhe police station.” There was an undertone of complete annoyance that was covered with a thin layer of cheerful compliance.

Schwartz nodded and swiftly went to collect Ludwig's coat and other winter accessories that were left in the bedroom. 

“Might I ask vhat it is I am being questioned about? I could clear zhings up right here und now. No need to vaste your time vhen you could be dealing vis much more dire zhings.” Eric pulled his hands behind his back again, doing his best to show a sense of confidence in the situation.

Karl smiled kindly. “I'm sorry doctor, but this specific case is currently being kept underwraps of sorts. We want to keep any word of this situation inside the police station. I hope you can understand that.” 

Something felt a little unsettling about this. Ludwig felt his heart thumping loudly in his chest. “Understood. Zhis sounds quite serious. I hope to be of any help zhat I can.” He kept up the friendly act.

Soon as Schwarts returned with Eric’s things, the officers walked behind Ludwig, down to the police car. He stepped in the back of the vehicle and the car pulled out of the circular road entrance of the manor.

The ride was mainly quiet. The only thing making noise was the police radio that went off every once in a while, but was ignored by both of the officers.

Otto seemed agitated in the silence, while Karl looked out the window and sometimes glanced in the rear view mirror to check on Eric.

Ludwig nervously bounced his leg. He was certain that this was about the Infinity club. Perhaps some outsider had seen his rather recognizable car. Maybe one of the club members themselves were so outraged by his actions of last night that they had the gaul to out him. He used the ride to formulate any excuses and explanations if these things were brought up. 

The vehicle stopped and Karl opened the back door for Eric. “I understand you must be a busy man. I mean, knowing your family trade is medical research. I knew your folks back when they worked at the hospital. Great people. Your parents are the ones who helped me and my wife with the delivery of our first baby. I can never forget that day.” 

Eric listened to Karl with intrigue as they followed Otto into the police station. The station was busy, but not overly loud. A handful of people were in the drunk tank. Others were paying for tickets or simply there to express some complaint about a noisy neighbor. 

Otto gestured to a door. “Wait in there while I get my papers.” Karl opened the door to the interrogation room and Eric walked in with less confidence than he had shown at the mansion.

“I vould really like to know vhat zhis is all about now zhat I am here. I have done nozhing but comply vhis your requests.” Eric took a seat at the table and folded his hands together, resting them on the cold metal surface. 

Karl shut the door and pulled out one of the two chairs that was across from Eric. “Thank you for being so cooperative doctor. I really hate to be doing this to you, but the chief’s got the orders and now we've got more evidence on the case.” 

“Ja. And vhat case vould zhat be exactly? I honestly have no idea vhat it iz zhat I could have answers for.” Ludwig’s leg began to nervously bouncing again. 

The interrogation door opening drew Eric and Karl's attention. Otto held some folders and a clear bag meant for evidence was sticking out of one of them. He took a seat and the tension in the room was brought back with the scowl from the older officer. 

The chief said bluntly. “You're a pretty smart guy. Graduated top of his class in record time from the university here. More impressively to become a doctor, though there is no real surprise in that, given your surname. Doctor Eric Ludwig.” 

Eric didn't like Otto's attitude. He was certainly getting the good cop and bad cop vibes from these two, though much more genuine. Ludwig remained quiet to see where the chief was going with this. 

Otto flipped open one of the files he had brought. “So, you're smart, and you have medical knowledge. But what do you do with it, doctor?” He didn't leave room for answer as he went on. “You worked for the Rottenberg hospital for some time, then seemed to have had a job lined up out of country, but suddenly declined and disappeared back to your parent’s estate. From my understanding this was because of your father’s passing.” 

Eric visibly tensed and he looked down at the surface of the metal table.

Karl interrupted saying sympathetically. “Very sorry for your loss, Eric.” 

Otto interjected again, sounding not moved or touched at all by any of this. “You've been living there since. Supposedly conducting medical research in the privacy if your estate. Is this all sounding rather on par?” 

Eric gave a small nod, but sounded increasingly more annoyed now. “I don't see vhy my field of study and career choice have to do vhis vhatever zhis is. Am I being accused of somezhing or helping provide my intelligence to a case?” 

“Do you recognize this?”. Otto slipped the clear baggy from under the unopened file and slid it to the center of the table. Inside was a small syringe, the glass slightly cracked. 

Eric looked to the syringe then to the officers with boredom. He said sarcastically. “Most people in my profession call zhat a needle or syringe. A common tool used for-”

“Cut the crap, doctor. We know what this is, but how it was used and where it was found is the main point.” Otto put his finger on the corner of the evidence bag. “You might have seen in the papers about the report of a missing body, stolen from the morgue. Well this needle was found on the floor of the Rottenberg morgue several nights ago. There was a frightened security guard that was found where the body had been stored. This syringe was used by the person who took the body to knock out the guard.” He leaned back in the wooden chair. “Some no-name Russian guy apparently died at the hospital and his body was the one that was taken. That dead guy was involved with something that the police were interested in. We have a good feeling that whoever stole the body might have a connection to the schemes that the Russian man was involved with. Any of this sounding familiar?” 

Internally, Eric was freaking out. That was the syringe he used to knock out the bodyguard. He thought he had been so careful that night at the hospital. However, it seemed something managed to slip through the cracks. “I’m afraid only zhe story from zhe paper is vhat I know of zhis body burglar. But from vhat it sounds like, zhe person you are looking for might be vorking at zhe hospital. Zhey could have used a syringe and sleep inducing drugs, vould have know vhere zhe bodyguard vas, and vhere zhe Russian’s body vas kept.” He took a soft, shaky breath and reminded himself to keep calm. 

Karl sighed and looked at the syringe. “You got a point, but the thing is that this needle isn't the same kind that are currently being used at the hospital. And the bodyguard that was attacked attested the assailant was male. The working staff that night consisted of strictly female doctors and nurses. Couldn't have been any of the staff that night.”

Otto smirked a little. “While this has been fun to watch you flounder around for fake excuses. We _know_ you were involved.” These were found on the syringe.” He pulled out a paper that consisted of a full set of fingerprints and next to that a set of similar smudged fingerprints. “These are a match to your prints, Eric. So, you were either the culprit, or you provided the drugs and tool to the actual perpetrator of the body snatcher. Either way. You know something, and I aim to find out exactly what that is.”


	33. The Search

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the wait, you know how life can get -busy-. Lol. Thank you for being patient as I am finishing up one of my last semesters in college, woot!

Ten minutes, thirty minutes, an hour had passed and Heavy was still waiting down in the lab. He had already gotten bored of looking over some of the various equipment, and unreadable papers that were scattered around tables and desk. Heavy glanced to the iron barred cell with the bundle of bedding shoved to one side. He could use the sleep, and maybe there was hope for when he woke up that Ludwig would have returned from the police. 

The monster slept for several hours until being startled awake by a ringing that echoed through the lab. He sat up, wide eyed from the loud noise. It finally registered that it was the wall mounted phone announcing that there was a call coming in. A low growl rumbled from the monster's chest as he got up and left the comfortable softness of the bedding. 

He lumbred over to the phone and picked up the receiver as he had seen Ludwig do. Misha waited to hear the person on the other line. 

Schwartz spoke up, his tone calm and collected. “Good evening Mr.Mikhail. I was curious if you were in need of anything before I take my leave for the night. I would be there in person to ask you, but it seems Ludwig locked up the lab before leaving. If you were unaware of this, there is a lever close to the phone. If you pull this then the door will open.” 

Misha glanced over to the lever that was currently in the ‘up’ position. 

“I suppose it was some form of safety measure made by the original creator of the lab. Some of the family histories have it written that Günter Ludwig envisioned this private work space. However, there are conflicting texts that claim-”

“Where is Eric?” Misha interrupted the rambling butler. He felt rather anxious not knowing. 

There was a pause before the old man's voice was heard again. “I'm afraid he hasn't returned home since his departure this morning. I have also yet to hear from the police. Though it should come as little surprise. I am not blood related to the young master, thus having no ties to which the police would be concerned of informing me of his current status.” Schwartz's tone was tinted with worry. “It does seem to be taking a considerable amount of time to be simply asking a few questions.”

The creation gave a low grumble before speaking up. “Heavy will open door for you. But doktor said not to be leaving lab. If is not too much trouble. Would you bring leetle bird down here? Is good for company.” He reached over and pulled the lever down. The recognizable noise of wall shifting could be heard from the stairwell. 

“Right away sir.” The phone clicked off as Schwartz made his way to Ludwig’s bedroom to gather Archimedes from the birdcage. 

There was nothing much that could be done while they awaited Ludwig’s return. Schwartz had gone to bed after having brought the bird down for the monster. Heavy kept awake for the remainder of the night with Archimedes to help fill the loneliness of the lab. The night passed and the unrest grew.

Schwartz was evidently distracted the next morning. He cleaned over some of the same spots over and over, while he worried over his young master. But all the building questions and concerns were put to rest with the retrieval of the morning paper. The top story was disheartening. 

LUDWIG FAMILY AT IT AGAIN?   
DOCTOR FOUND GUILTY OF INVOLVEMENT IN THE MISSING BODY FROM LOCAL MORGUE! 

To the butler’s further dismay, there was a mugshot of Eric to confirm the headline. The doctor was facing forward in front of a striped background holding a plaque with his arrest information. 

“Oh dear. This is not good. Not good at all.” Schwartz knew better than to keep this information from Mikhail, who was still holled up in the lab. He rolled up the newspaper and hurried towards the lab.

There was a light, yet urgent, tapping coming from the closed secret entrance. Heavy had Archimedes perched on his shoulder. The dove had been sleeping soundly until his perch shifted. The stitched up creation stood and went to the wall with the lever. Heavy’s heart was excitedly thumping, hoping the knocking meant Schwartz had good news. There was a small spark of harmless electricity that leapt from his hand to lever as he pulled it down to open the door.

The sound of posh pattering foot fall came from the stairwell as Schwartz hurried down. “Oh,Mr.Mikhail, I have gotten news about master Ludwig.” The old man presented the rolled up newspaper to the monster. “I’m afraid it's rather grim, sir.”

Heavy took the paper hastily and unfurled it. His eyes went right to the photo of Eric’s mugshot before he looked over the headline. It was in German so he skimmed the words once or twice before fully understanding. “Doktor is in jail? But is misunderstanding. He _saved_ me. Misha is not dead anymore because of Eric.” His tone got emotional as his grip on the morning newspaper tightened. 

Schwartz looked up at Heavy. “Yes. I know this, but the police don't. And they wouldn't likely understand even if the situation were explained to them. I know it took myself some time to wrap my head around it… people don't simply come back from the dead afterall.”

Heavy's expression fell to sadness and his grip loosened slightly on the paper. “Doktor can explain to police. He is smart. Heavy can explain also. Could say Ludwig was not wrong in taking me from morgue. Heavy is happy to be alive again. Even looking like this.” He reached up with one of his hands to lightly touch one of the bolts in his neck.

Schwartz shooks his head a little and reached up to put a hand on the monster's arm. “Things are not that simple. I know you can understand that. It is often difficult for the average person to grasp what is different from the norm. Confusion and lack of understanding has the potential to bring out the worst in people.” 

Just as Misha was going to retort with some stubborn excuse, there was a loud banging that had reverberated through the mansion's interior. Schwartz immediately walked back towards the stairwell leading up. 

Heavy followed behind, and on his shoulder, Archimedes ruffled up his feathers from the startling sound. “What was noise?”. 

There was faint yelling that was followed by another set of loud thumping. 

“It seems that someone is at the door.” The old butler turned around and reached up to scoop the dove off Heavy's shoulder. “Lock up when I've cleared the doorway.” Then he proceeded to go up the steps in a hurry. 

As instructed, Heavy pulled the lever up and the door’s mechanisms clicked into action. Shutting him into the lab once again. 

Schwartz set the dove into his cage before shuffling as quickly as he was able to the door which was being pounded on by someone very impatient. He opened it, trying his best to look poised and calm. He noticed that it was the police chief again. This time Otto llooked to be accompanied by four other officers, none of which were Karl. “Good morning sirs, is ther-”

“No need for pleasantries jeeves.” Otto said in a surly manner and snapped his fingers as one of the other policemen promptly stepped forward. This man presented a paper to Schwartz, who carefully took it. 

The paper was a warrant to search the grounds of the manor. No doubt to possibly find the missing body or any other evidence to put Ludwig into more trouble then he already was in for. Schwartz had no choice but to step aside as the five lawmen barged into the mansion.

The four policemen fanned out, but the chief staid put in the entryway. Once Schwartz closed the front door and turned around, Otto was looking sternly at him. “Did you have any form of assistance or knowledge of Eric Ludwig's involvement with the robbery at the morgue?” 

Schwartz remained calm and said with an even tone.“I'm afraid that my services to young master Ludwig pertain to the care taking of the estate.” 

Otto grunted and sneered at the old man. It was obvious that the old bat was avoiding the question. “Alright. Fine.” He tucked a hand into his coat pocket. “I take it that means you know these grounds very well then.” 

“Yes sir. I've been tending to this place for the Ludwig family for most of my life.” The butler said with a hint of pride. 

“Well in that case, you must know where this goes to.” Otto smirked as he pulled something out of his pocket. He lifted a familiar key into view. There were white marble doves facing one another at the base which lead to a golden stem and upwards facing prongs. 

Schwartz stood quiet for a moment, unsure of how to answer this. He squinted and adjusted his half-moon shaped glasses to buy himself some time to think.

Otto twirled the key around in his hand. “Found this tucked away in one of Dr.Ludwig’s socks when taking him through processing. He went pretty pale when we took it. It doesn't take a genius to know that this fancy looking key goes somewhere important. And seeing as we have a warrant to search every goddamn inch of this place. I implore you to do the smart thing a just show me where this key goes. It would be a waste of my time having to arrest an old man like you for refusing a warranted sweep.” 

Schwartz lifted his chin in defiance before retorting. “I can tell you exactly where that key belongs.” He stepped forward with hand hands clasped together in front of his abdomen, poised as a proper butler might. “It certainly does not belong in your hands.”

Otto glared up at the cocky butler. He raised his voice so it would carry throughout the large mansion. “Search harder boys! Leave nothing unturned!”

Almost on queue, there was shattering noises which came from the kitchen. Then from upstairs there were several thudding sounds of furniture being tipped over and paintings ripped from the wall. The sounds of fluttering tossed papers and ruffled books from the office. 

The butler looked shaken from the various sounds of destruction emanating from around the mansion. 

Otto now grinned with a cold gleam in his eyes. “Sounds like a thorough sweep to me. I could probably stop them if they had something more interesting to look at.” He tossed the key up a little and caught it in a taunting manner. 

Schwartz looked torn. The place he had cared for over the majority of his lifetime was being carelessly broken. But if he revealed the secret entrance, the Ludwig family histories would be discovered along with the 6 and a half foot tall undead Russian science experiment. 

With the options weighed, he found a possible plan of action. The butler's eyes seemed grim as he turned on his heels towards the direction of the master bedroom. “Call your men off. I'll show you to the door that key goes to.”


	34. Found

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I guess any warnings I would put for this chapter might be some violence.  
> Hope you enjoy! This is my longest chapter yet!

“Men! Looks like we've got a lead!” Otto gruffly shouted, which reverberated through the large, empty manor. There were hurried sounds of footfall that soon converged into the entryway where the four other officers joined the chief and nervous butler. 

Schwartz had taken a few steps towards the lounge and stopped when all the lawmen had gathered. “If you would follow me. I believe what you wish to see is this way.” He turned and slowly walked through the lounge and then down the hallway towards the master bedroom. 

Otto eagerly followed with a smug look. He knew that shifty doctor was hiding something, even before this odd key had been found. 

As they entered the master bedroom, Archimedes cood and flapped his wings in irritation towards the large group of people that had entered the room. The bird fluffed up his feathers and parched on the furthest bar in the back, far from where the strange people were. 

Schwartz stopped in the middle of the grand master bedroom and turned to face the group of officers. He clasped his hands together and said in a more projected tone. “Now, what I am about to show you is the Ludwig family's private laboratory. If you do not know of the influence this family has had on our dear town, then I shall simply remind you that the equipment and literature contained behind this wall should be treated with the utmost respect. Meaning. If I find any of you searching in a manner I deem unjustly reckless, then I shall dutifully take each and everyone of you to court, as it is my duty to keep the Ludwig family's legacy protected. I understand you have warranted permission to search the estate grounds, but any more of your _imprudent rummaging_ and I will file charges. Have I made myself clear?”

The officer's nodded, but Otto crossed his arms with a sneer. “Alright, we'll be careful. Just show me where this goddamn secret lab is already.”

Only moments earlier…

Heavy was pacing back and forth as Schwartz had just gone to answer the door. Was it more news about Ludwig? Was it more police? Were they here to take Schwartz away too? The uncertainty was raising Misha’s anxiety along with the desire to do something about this situation. If Schwartz was in trouble, he needed to protect the old man. Just as the big guy was coming close to his choice of finding out what was going on up in the manor, he heard noises coming from the bedroom. People were coming. Then he heard the familiar tone of the butler and could make out parts of what was being discussed. They were going to be _searching the lab_. 

This spurred Heavy into quickly gathering up some of the papers that were scattered around. He especially took hold of Eric's personal journal and tucked it under his arm. Next crucial thing to do was hide. Looking around, there wasn't much to work with down here. He could hear a gruffer voice in response to the end of whatever Schwartz had concluded saying. He needed to act quickly if he didn't want to be the first thing seen by the search party.

Back up in the master bedroom. Schwartz had hoped that the monster had been listening to his small rant that was meant to warn of, and stall, the inspection. “Might I have the key?”. The butler held out one of his white silken gloved hands. 

“Don't try anything funny.” Otto reluctantly placed the key in the old man's hand and looked impatiently as he awaited the reveal. 

Schwartz closed his hand around the key and walked towards the wall decor of the family crest. He inserted the key into the wall and turned it. With his breath held, the loyal butler had only a small hope that his plan had worked and Mr.Mikhail had heard him and taken the needed precautions for the unwanted visitors. 

The mechanical sounds of the wall caught the officers attention as the four of the underlings looked in awe at the door. Otto kept his surly glare and walked towards the moving entrance. “Great job jeeves. Let's hope this is an enlightening search.” He motioned for his men to head down first once the door had fully opened. He was close behind them.

“Do _not_ break anything.” Schwartz said again in an warning tone as he followed the group of officers down into the lab. To his relief, there were missing papers and the journal, but most importantly a missing giant undead Russian man. 

Misha had found a tight hiding spot behind the back bookcase. Between the stone wall and old wooden shelving filled with the controversial journals of the estranged Ludwig family branch.

Otto had his men search the place, though in a much less ruthless manner than before. Two of the officers went to the shelving full of books and papers while the other two went to scour the lab set up with the equipment. Otto stood near Schwartz and watched his men work, waiting to see if any of them might find something of interest. 

“This place has _mad man_ written all over it.” The chief scoffed and crossed his arms. “It's a surprise that this whole estate is still owned by the old Ludwig family. Honestly, this place would be in much better use with what the mayor has had planned for it.”

Schwartz subtly looked down at Otto with a disdainful glare. “I’m sure you think so, but as my master lives and breaths, this place will belong solely to him and his successors.”

Otto retorted snidely. “As if anyone would want to be stuck with a Ludwig, let alone carry on the shameful name. He's about as pleasant to be with as it is to walk around in wet socks. No way. As soon as he's found guilty, he should do the smart thing and just sell this place to pay off all the criminal fines.”

Schwartz said nothing further on the subject as he watched the four other policemen snooping about. “Please refrain from handling the equipment. It is old and without proper knowledge of its use, it can be quite dangerous.” He took a few steps over towards the lab area, away from Otto.

The cages were questioned, which seemed reasonable to wonder about their purpose. Especially seeing as one had a pile of recently placed bed clothes inside. The butler simply explained that sometimes his master would be working on his research and fall asleep down there. 

Of course the syringes were noted and brought to Otto's attention that they matched the one found at the scene of the morgue robbery. They placed the three into a plastic baggy and carried on with their investigation of the lab equipment.

The other two policemen were combing over the bookshelves and finding little to nothing of interest. That is until coming to the farthest placed shelves that were in a darkened corner of the lab. The two officers stuck close as one looked through one of the forgotten journals and the other went to pick up the eerie skull resting on a top shelf. 

Heavy could barely see the two officers that were looking over the shelving in front of him. He took slow, controlled breaths, trying not to make a sound as he tried to keep hidden. 

The unmarked journal was placed back on the shelf, but the skull was taken to the chief for further inspection and to be bagged.

“It seems we've found enough to call this a done deal. Partial human remains, and syringes that I can only guess are filled with the same knockout juice that was used on the security guard.” Otto, gestured for his officers to head out. 

Schwartz stepped in front of the entryway, blocking the path. “I'm afraid you must be mistaken. That skull has been down here much longer than the body that was stolen has been a corpse.” The old man looked determined. “And it could be meer coincidence that these syringes are similar to the one used on the victim.” 

Otto rolled his eyes. “None of that matters. I am the law, along with the mayor of this humdrum town. All I see here is clear evidence to put Dr.Ludwig away for a long time. Or if he's lucky, a few years of treatment in the asylum. I mean, crazy does run in the family, right?” His derogatory comments concluded with an unfriendly chuckle.

The lights in the lab began to flicker unnaturally. This caught the attention of everyone in the lab as they glanced around at the ceiling in confusion. There were subtle sounds of sparks emanating from the back of the lab's library. 

Heavy could feel the gradual warming of his skin. The tingling, electrical energy flowing through him as his anger had risen from hearing the unjust nature of the chief of police. Something inside had snapped and sparks were dancing across the metal stitches woven into him. The bolts on his neck crackled as electricity sprung out in random jolts. 

Misha had remembered something. The scene that had come into focus in his mind was at the hospital. His head was wrapped in bloodied bandages from the incident, which he pieced together had been a raid on the Infinity club. It had been chief officer Otto Roth. That gruff, cruel laugh had been the last thing he had heard before everything faded to black. It was Roth who had killed him that day as he was recovering in the hospital from his head injury. And it was Roth who now threatened to have Ludwig rot in jail or be sent to an asylum. No doubt this having been orchestrated by the mayor to get his greedy hands on the land which the estate was on.

“ _You_. Go check out that noise.” Otto shoved the closest officer to him in the direction of the sound in question.

The policeman that was ordered to inspect the noise treaded carefully towards the creepy corner of the lab’s library. There was now a strange glow coming from behind the decrepit bookshelf. The cautious officer took out his gun and proceeded to get closer. 

Otto waited with Schwartz and other three officers near the entrance of the lab. He had his arms crossed and was impatiently tapping his boot on the stone floor. “Find anything?”. There was no reply. 

Roth growled as he didn't get an immediate response. He was about to raise his voice and ask again, but there was a sudden scared yell and two gunshots before the crashing sound of a bookshelf making contact with the ground, then more silence as the lighting became stable again.

The chief immediately drew his weapon and the other officers followed suit. Roth motioned for the other three to check out what had happened. He stayed behind with Schwartz by the stairwell. The old butler could only guess what had happened and he could feel the tension rising in the air.

As the three other policemen rounded one of the bookshelves to see what had befallen their friend, a sudden flash of bright sparks exploded overhead as the lighting above was struck with a bolt of electricity. Glass shattered as the library had gotten significantly darker compared to the other half of the laboratory. 

“What?! What's going on? What is it?!” Otto questioned in a demanding tone to the butler or his men who were approaching it. 

“It seems you've found him, and in a rather bad mood I might add.” Schwartz said nervously as he took a step behind the chief. 

The police officers shakily held their guns out as the sparks coming from the broken ceiling lights went out. Their eyes adjusted to the new darkness and there was the image of a large figure that was only distinguishable by the blue and white flickering jolts of electricity springing forth in spurts from various parts of his body. The monster's eyes were glowing a haunting blue. Then in a threatening manner, his arms rose up as his hands were held open in the direction of the three frightened officers.

One of the officers was brave enough to take a shot. “W-what the hell is that thing!?” 

Heavy felt his anger only rise as a bullet struck his right shoulder. This burning rush of energy coursing through every fiber of his being seemed to neglect the expected pain from the attack. With a thunderous roar, Heavy approached the three officers. With his hands held outwards towards them, from his fingertips lept a great surge of electricity that struck the three men who were threatening him with their guns. 

The officers were hit with the strong electrical current and their guns went off. Their muscles convulsed which had involuntarily set off their weapons. Luckily all of the shots missed their intended target. They all spasmed as the shock ran through their system and were unconscious within seconds. 

For once, the chief of police didn't look so gruff and sure of himself. Otto was clearly scared of whatever it was they had stumbled upon in this ominous laboratory. He kept his gun raised and reached behind himself to grab a hold of Schwartz’s wrist to keep the butler from running. This lab must have been some kind of freak factory. “Come out w-with your hands up!”. Officer Roth stammered, though trying to keep his dominate tone. 

“Unhand me you brute!” Schwartz tried to pull his hand away from the sudden firm grasp Otto had around his wrist, but to no avail.

Misha heard the command the chief made and the yelp come from his butler friend. He lowered his hands and turned, walking out from the lines of bookshelves. There were slight burn marks on his clothing where the rows of stitching were binding his parts together. Stitches that were now hot from the volts of energy that were fueled by his anger. He walked into view and turned to face Roth and narrowed his glowing eyes. “ _You _.”__

__There was a glimpse of fear, then sudden recognition that crossed Roth's expression. The fearful look in his eyes shifted suddenly to a deep seated hatred. “ And I thought you were a freak of nature before…now look at you. You're supposed to be dead. How is it that you're still alive?” He said with disgust._ _

__Heavy said bluntly. “Was saved by very good doktor. Same one you are trying to put in jail.” He clenched and opened both his hands as a few sparks flew threateningly. “Now let butler go.”_ _

__Otto looked at the monster of a man in front of him and knew he was no match against this freak of nature. With a jostling tug, he pulled Schwartz in front of himself and pushed the gun against the old man's side. Schwartz looked very worried as he felt the end of a gun pressed up against him._ _

__Heavy glared and the lights above then flickered as the chief of police threatened Schwartz at gunpoint. “You have found who you are looking for. No dead body. No evidence for doktor's crime. Let. him. go.”_ _

__“You shouldn't be concerned with the kind of trouble Dr.Ludwig is in. You should be more worried about yourself.” Roth sneered. “I know who you are, Mikhial. The kind of _sick people_ you represent and protect. I'm not leaving here without taking you in.”_ _

__Sparks flew from Misha's neck bolts and hands. Two of the lights up above him shattered and short circuited. “We are not sick people! You are sick for not seeing us as people! And mayor also for not seeing us as people! You are who make people think I am monster. But not my doktor. Ludwig saved me and knows who Heavy really is. Even behind all dese scars and wires. He sees me as person no matter what!” He pointedly gestured to a few of his exposed sparking sutures._ _

__Roth glared and kept the gun fixed against Schwartz side. “Simmer down, or jeeves will be the next one needing to be raised from the dead.” He said mockingly as he looked intent on pulling the trigger._ _

__Misha could sense the sincerity in the chief's voice. If Otto was the kind of man to kill someone defenseless in the hospital like Heavy had been, there were no doubts he would kill the innocent old butler right then if Heavy didn't comply. With a firm glare, Misha held up his hands to show his surrender. The rage which sent him into a rather electrical state began to fade. The electricity that emanated from his wire seams and bolts dissipated. The glowing of his eyes also went away. Heavy blinked a few times as he suddenly felt very tired from the large amount of energy he had output with fighting the intruders. His raised arms felt heavy and his legs were growing weak under his weight. Finally, his vision blurred and the room swayed… until everything went dark._ _

__Otto tilted his head to the side in confusion at the suddenly fainted Russian. “Well I suppose that works for a surrender. Now one last loose end to take care of.” He proceeded to squeeze the trigger to the gun that was rested against Schwartz’s side._ _

__**BANG ******_ _


End file.
